


When I Met You In The Summer

by Latchingontoyou



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2017-03-23
Packaged: 2018-07-24 20:19:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 37,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7521676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Latchingontoyou/pseuds/Latchingontoyou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nicole Haught finds herself on a bus to Purgatory with her best friends Wynonna and Dolls to spend the summer at the Homestead where she meets Waverly for the first time face-to-face.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Purgatory

**Author's Note:**

> This fic goes out to my friend None. Happy belated birthday and hope that you and everyone else enjoys this fic :)

**_Nicole_ **

In hindsight I should've known that a woman who would break into the university swim team's pool with a bottle of Jack Daniel's and half way to the drunk tank already, would make for an interesting friend, or at least raised a red flag for trouble. Wynonna Earp is by far a hot mess of a woman who no one would've thought I would ever befriend because she was quick to a temper, could out drink most the men on campus, and was up for any type of fun no matter the consequences. What people fail to mention though is that she's also loyal to her friends and would deck anyone who insulted them, she would take charge of a situation if no one else was up for the job, and she cared more than her smartass mouth could ever let on. She was a person who projected that she could take on the world without any help from anyone, but was also someone who would seek out affection in any way she could whether it was through sharing a bottle of cheap alcohol or needing to hear her sister say she loves her (this last one I only know about because I accidently walked in on a phone call on my attempt to see if she was okay). All in all, those were the most strikingly obvious traits of hers if people measured her by everything she is and not the parts they want to see. This is why we're friends. 

Then there's Dolls. The more serious of us three. He's the fun sucker and the one that is always trying to deter us from doing what Wynonna would call "adventurous opportunities." Even though he's considered the voice of reason he begrudgingly ends up following us to make sure we don't end up in the hospital then grumbling angrily about how irresponsible we both are and how come I allow Earp to do whatever she likes. He's also always the one who drags us back to his place to sleep off our hangovers and shove greasy bacon and cheese breakfast sandwiches down our throats with Advil and coffee to make sure we survive the next day especially if we have classes. Weekends are reserved for when he forces us to sleep half the day because he knows we'll stay up all night, so we might as well be rested and fed. He also has this weird thing about calling people by their last names. I think it’s his weird show of affection because he only does it with Wynonna and myself. Wynonna's sister in turn is called Little Earp otherwise it would get confusing calling them both Earp (another phone call I walked in on). I guess the best way to sum up Dolls is that he's great backup in sticky situations and cares more then he likes to admit. You can think of him as a big teddy bear with a tough as nails exterior. 

But these are my two best friends. Dolls who's studying Archaeology and Military History and Wynonna who is oddly enough studying Criminology. Dolls I could understand because he's in the ROTC program, has this thing about weapons and talking about the history behind them, and going to places to dig around for artifacts in the middle of the deserts in the US. Wynonna on the other hand I couldn't believe since she spends more time breaking laws then following them. 

Turns out that the only reason why she's in college is because her Aunt Gus made a bet with her saying she couldn't get into college or graduate and if she could that she'd get a stake in the bar her family owns. In typical Wynonna fashion, she not only got into college, but she decided to study Criminology as a big fuck you to everyone in her town who had ever called the sheriff on her, sent her to juvie, or complained that she was nothing but trouble. It was her way of saying that they are no better than her just because they think they're perfect and could do no wrong. It was her saying that they can all fuck themselves and their sense of righteousness and justice since some in the justice system in her town were corrupted, but never got punished for their bullshit. So Wynonna is just waiting for the moment to walk around as deputy sheriff to shock everyone who has ever doubted or done her wrong. 

Now as for Wynonna's sister I don't know much about her other than what Wynonna or Dolls tell me about her or what I end up hearing on Their end of the phone call. As far as I know, her name is Waverly and she'll be starting university here this upcoming Fall in spite of Wynonna's pleas for her to go to a different college. What I know is that Wynonna will drop what she's doing in the moment to answer a call or text from her sister. What I know is that Wynonna moved away and tried her best not go home because she felt that the best chance her sister would have at a normal life was if she stayed as far away as possible, but she facetimes her at least. What I know is that Dolls can talk to her about history stuff because she's in love with history and dead languages. What I also know is that she's pretty cute from what I could see in the picture that Wynonna keeps by her bed. Then there was also the fact that she was able to get Wynonna to go back home for the summer by pestering Wynonna at all hours of the day until Wynonna finally gave in and agreed to go home before helping her move up here for school where she'll stay in Wynonna's apartment. 

And that is how I found myself on a bus with Wynonna and Dolls on the way to the little town of Purgatory. 

Wynonna bugged the living hell out of the both of us until we finally agreed to go with her and keep her company because being home was a pain in the ass since apparently everyone in that town hates her for some reason or another. My parents didn't mind me not coming home because it gave them the opportunity to go traveling around the states like they have been wanting to since they sent me to college. Dolls doesn't have a family since they died in a car crash a long time ago and his grandmother passed away the summer after he finished his fist year. He's also not close to anyone on his mother's side of the family, so he doesn't really consider them family. So this is why you can currently find us both on what Wynonna calls "a shitty bus" on our way to her hometown to spend time with her sister Waverly and her Aunt Gus. 

I leaned back against the window of the bus as I stared at Wynonna across the way with her feet up in the chair next her. Not many people were on this bus heading in our direction so all three of us took the liberty to occupy our own two seats. Dolls was in the seat in front of mine with headphones on and his eyes closed while Wynonna stared out her window at the never ending scenery of desert with a forlorn look on her face and tapping her foot as if she was itching to make a break for it if only the bus would stop soon. I simply played Solitaire on my phone losing more hands than I won. 

The road to Purgatory was a bumpy one as well as making it seem like we were being driven out to the farthest corner of the world to be murdered in cold blood and forgotten, but I guess that's the typical feeling one would have if they watched as many horror films as I have along with too many mob ones. Although from what Wynonna has told me, being in Purgatory was pretty much like being driven to the end of the world just to suffer. It was a few hours’ drive in either direction to the next nearest town and everyone knew everything about everyone, so blackmailing, judging, and hypocrisy was the forefront of everyone's to-do list in town. Plus, it seemed like hardly anyone really left the town to seek a life outside it and if anyone did they ended up right back because they couldn't hack it in the real world. I tend to not put too much stock in Wynonna's descriptions of things because I like to make my own judgements, but she hasn't been wrong yet.

Wynonna kicked my foot then nodded her head to the window as she scooted back in her seat. I turned my head to get a look at the welcome to Purgatory sign then messaged Dolls letting him know we just crossed into the territory of Purgatory and were almost at our destination. I listened as Dolls shifted in his seat to look behind him at more desert and a few scarce trees here and there. Wynonna brought a knee up to her chest and slung her arm over it as she stared out the window. In another forty minutes the town was visible up ahead then another thirty minutes later the bus jerked to a stop in front of a place called Shorty's Saloon.   
Wynonna let out a heavy breath then hopped up out of her seat to get off the bus. I followed behind her with Dolls at my back as we shuffled off the bus. Our bags were thrown onto the floor by the bus driver and Dolls glared at him for his carefree way of handling our luggage. We picked up our bags as Wynonna stared at the doors of Shorty's which I can see was the only bar here and probably the same one her Aunt Gus put up on the bet. Wynonna gripped the handle of her bags tighter then waltzed forward with some stiffness in her shoulders pulling open the door to the bar. I looked to Dolls who shrugged before following her inside. 

The bar was mildly loud with music playing from an old jukebox and people chatting and drinking at the tables scattered around the room and the bar to the right. The people stopped talking as their eyes fell on us...well more accurately on Wynonna. I stepped up to her right and glanced at her through the corner of my eye. Her eyes were searching the crowd until they finally settled. I followed her line of sight and felt the air get knocked out of me. If I thought Wynonna's sister Waverly was cute in just a photo this was a whole different level in person.   
She had long brown hair that she currently had done in a braid over her right shoulder and judging by her midriff, she had a pretty toned stomach. She was possibly shorter than me going off her petite looking frame and if her legs were anything to go by, she had some muscle on her. Her eyes were a damning dark brown that drew me in as if she was a Siren and didn't even need her singing voice to lure me off a ship at sea. Her smile was wide and bright enough to light my way in the dark for years to come. There was also this aura of joy that seemed to surround her, but there was this way that she walked across the saloon that made it seem as if she could get up to as much trouble as her sister. 

"Well look who decided to show up after three years," Waverly spoke. Yeah she can definitely lure me to my death with that angelic voice. 

"You would think that after being Gus' favorite you'd have her send you to Hawaii or somewhere else that isn't the back end of the Devil's ass to enjoy summer," Wynonna responded with a smirk planted on her face. 

"That money is going toward university and for you to help me move." 

"With all these guys you've been telling me about you would think they'd jump at the chance to spend a few hours of a car ride with you to help you move, but then again no one here has the decency to even hold the door open for a woman let alone themselves if I remember the amount of times people have smacked the door closed on themselves here." 

Waverly climbed up the small steps to give Wynonna a hug. "Well Champ thankfully has offered to let us borrow his truck so long as you pay for the gas and food." 

"Yeah that'll only happen after I've died and let the tequila bottle roll out of my hand." 

Waverly rolled her eyes then stood back with her hands on her hips and looked from Dolls to me. "And who are your friends?" 

"Is the dust in this place clouding up your mind because I thought I told you I was bringing my friends Dolls and Nicole so I wouldn't have to suffer alone."

"Haha very funny. Now stop being rude," Waverly chided. 

"Well that's Dolls, the one you go all nerd mode with on the phone," Wynonna said jabbing her thumb behind her to point at Dolls. "And this is Nicole," she finished while pointing at me. "And if you haven't figured it out yet, this is my sister Waverly," she introduced.

"Nice to meet you," I stuck my hand out for Waverly to shake. 

"Likewise," Waverly answered while shaking my hand and her smile growing even wider.  

"Is Gus here?" Wynonna asked Waverly. 

Waverly kept her eyes on me and tilted her head to the side. "Earth to Waverly!" Wynonna called. 

Waverly blinked then moved her gaze away from me. "Yeah she's in the back. She said you could borrow her truck to go drop your stuff off at the homestead and show your friends around." 

"Where the keys at?" 

"You'll have to go get them from her." 

"Perfect," Wynonna said sarcastically. She turned to us. "I'll be back then we can go look at my dear old home."

"Don't sound too excited now Earp," Dolls said. 

"Go dig a hole Dolls," Wynonna replied as she left her stuff with us and made her way to the back. 

Dolls smiled then looked to Waverly. "I hope Champ still isn't your boyfriend," he said soundly rather brotherly despite having never been face-to-face with Waverly. 

Waverly rolled her eyes then went down the steps to the bar. "Dolls no more please. I already hear enough from Wynonna." 

Dolls picked up Wynonna's bags then followed Waverly. "Well Wynonna is just worried and thinks you deserve better. Plus, you'll be in college soon so the options are going to be plenty." 

Waverly's eyes shot to me then away back to Dolls. "He's a good guy," she responded. 

"There are plenty of good guys at the university." 

She grabbed a regular sized cup and filled it with water then placed it in front of Dolls. "Just drop it Dolls." She leaned on the bar and looked to me. "What can I get you?" 

"A water is fine with me." 

She nodded her head and got me a glass as well. "Well Champ has plans to visit me and everything, so I'm not even going to be interested in other people," she said as her fingers brushed against mine when she handed me the glass of water. 

Dolls shook his head. "Back me up here Haught."  

I put my hands up placatingly. "Nope. I'm not getting into this. Besides I'm of the Sapphic persuasion." 

Waverly leaned forward on the bar. "Wait your last name is Hot?" 

I smiled. "Yes. Its spelled H-a-u-g-h-t and your sister has already spent an entire year annoying me with her awful puns," I said giving her a wink. 

She giggled and damn if that didn't make my heart flutter. "So Nicole Haught," she said with a smirk. "What are you studying at the university?" She asked clearly changing the subject much to Dolls' displeasure. 

I smiled and leaned on the bar a bit more. "I'm studying Criminology and yes I do save your sister's life during exams and other assignments." 

"Well I'm glad someone is keeping her afloat," she said amused. 

"At least when it comes to academics," I admitted. 

"Yeah Haught here is always up to join Wynonna on her many adventures much to my dismay," Dolls said as his eyes curiously looked between us. 

"Is that so?" Waverly asked with a lilt in her voice. 

"Wynonna is convincing after a couple of shots of tequila."

"Shots?" She said with an amused look in her eyes. 

"Okay. Swigs straight from the bottle," I answered honestly. 

"I thought so." 

"Wynonna! Wynonna come back here!" A woman shouted as Wynonna sprinted out from the back with two bottles of Jack Daniels in her hands and a few other choices in flat bottles tucked into the waistband of her jeans. 

"Time to go," Wynonna said as she rushed past us. "See you later Waverly!" She called out. 

Dolls shook his head and grabbed the bags. "Bye Little Earp," he said on his way out. 

I grabbed my stuff as well. "Bye. It was nice meeting you." 

"I'll see you tonight at the homestead right?" Waverly asked sounding a bit anxious. 

"I suppose so since that's where we're staying. Uh..." I reached over the bar grabbing one of the white napkins used as coasters for drinks and my pen from my coat pocket then scribbled my phone number down really quick. "If you get bored or something while you're here feel free to give me a call or shoot me a text." I handed her the napkin and slid my pen back in my pocket. "I'll see you later." I winked then quickly took off as I saw a very ticked off older woman race out from the back who I can only guess was Aunt Gus. 

I beat Aunt Gus to the door not getting a chance to look back at Waverly one last time. I rushed outside to see Wynonna already ready to take off and Dolls on the passenger side looking bored. 

"Hurry it up Haught-stuff. This isn't the turtle races." 

"Wynonna!" Aunt Gus called as she followed behind me. 

Wynonna rolled her eyes and I quickly jumped into the back of the truck. With a glance at the rear view mirror, Wynonna put her foot on the gas and took off to her house. I moved the luggage around in the bed of the truck in order to sit more comfortably with my back against the cabin. I turned to glance in the cabin and met Dolls eyes. He gave me a wide knowing smile then looked to be trying to hold in a laugh. He's always able to see right through   
me and at times it can get really annoying, like right now. 

So Wynonna's baby sister is completely cute and beautiful. She's breathtaking and my heart seemed to jump out of my chest like a horse out the gate. Her eyes were light and captivating, but held their own source of mischief and playfulness. At first glance it may look like she can't protect herself, but something about the way she stands and the way she talked with Dolls shows she has her own fight and could probably hold her own in a fight if it came down to it. She looked like a person who has multiple layers to her and I have this itching feeling to know every single one of them if she will allow me. 

I pulled out my phone and began to play Solitaire again until we finally pulled over. I looked up and around seeing nothing but dirt and mountains all around, plus a barn off to the side. I hopped out the back of the truck then grabbed up my bags as Wynonna slammed her door shut then twirled the truck keys in her hand before waiting for me to hand her her bags. She took them then walked away to go open the door to the house. 

"Welcome to the Homestead," Wynonna announced sarcastically. 

I followed Dolls inside and took in the old west feel of the house, but when your friend is a descendant of a famous wild west gunslinger, it's to be expected. "So this is what Wyatt Earp built," I mused out loud. 

"The one and only," Wynonna said with a sigh placing the bottles of tequila on the table then grabbing her bags and tossing them by the couch. "So Haught-shot you can either share my room where you will most likely be sleeping on the floor in a well put together blanket bed or you can take this lovely couch unless Dolls wants to be a gentleman and let you have his room." 

Dolls gave Wynonna one of his fake smiles. "Why don't you take the couch and give your guest your bed?" 

She huffed. "You two stopped being guests when you saw me half-naked and accumulated frequent flier miles by continuing to see me half-naked or staying at my apartment after nights of drinking." 

"Correction, I have seen you fully naked during that time that you thought it was a good idea to go skinny dipping in the fountain at the main gates of the campus," I corrected. 

She pointer her finger at me with a wide smile on her face. "And that's why you're my favorite and the fact you said my ass was top shelf." 

"A: your butt is top shelf and B: that girl shouldn't have insulted you by saying you needed a butt lift," I said walking into the kitchen area. 

"Well I feel that Wynonna should still sleep on the couch," Dolls said pulling the conversation back on topic as usual. 

"Well it wouldn't be the worse place I've ever slept," Wynonna said. 

"Good that's settled then. I'll take your bags up Haught, " Dolls said as the sound of his footsteps on the creaky stairs followed right after. 

"Why do I feel like he just pushed me into a corner?" Wynonna asked as she opened one of the bottles of Jack and took a deep drink from it. 

"Because that's what he's good at." I swiped the bottle from her grasp and set it on the counter. "Eat first." 

She rolled her eyes then went to the fridge. "So we're probably just going to stay in tonight, so I can catch up with my baby sister." 

I leaned back against the counter. "That's fine with me. I'm kinda tired anyway since I had that practice yesterday then traveled through the night on a rickety old bus." 

She nodded her head as she pulled out some stuff to make a quick sandwich. "How did that go by the way?" She sucked some mustard off her thumb as she hastily put her sandwich together. 

"Not too bad. I'm sore, but it’s nothing compared to during the actual season. I'm just glad that I don't have to worry about practicing until we get back because this new coach was threatening to keep us all summer." 

"Fat chance I'd let that bald eagle keep you all summer." She grabbed the bottle of Jack off the counter and settled back into the chair at the table.

"Were you planning on busting me out or something?" 

"More like kidnapping you right off the track and into a waiting golf cart." 

I nodded my head. "Well you can't kidnap someone willing to escape at all costs." 

She shrugged. "Well then I'd just be crashing yet another party." 

"Please tell me you two aren't making plans to party tonight," Dolls said exasperated as he took the bottle of Jack from Wynonna and set it on the counter. 

She scowled at him. "No, but tomorrow is a different day." 

"Good to hear," he said with a light tone.  

"Well is there anything we should do right now?" I asked. 

Wynonna chewed through a bite of sandwich in her mouth and shook her head. "I think we all could use a bit of sleep since that bus was just a prison bed on wheels." 

"You'd know all about that hub?" Dolls said while crossing his arms over his chest. 

Wynonna stuck her tongue out at him. "Go scavenger hunt for something old and dusty like your love life." 

I fought the urge to laugh, but failed. Dolls glared at me. I held my hands up in surrender. "I'm just going to go find my way upstairs for some sleep." 

"Way to wave the white flag," Wynonna joked. 

"Better than that black bra during that game of paintball," I shot back. 

She pointed at me. "To be fair, I didn't do laundry so I didn't have any socks on that day." 

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." 

She kicked her foot out planting it right on my butt and shoving me away playfully. "Get out of here Haught-pants!" 

"Yeah yeah. Don't drink too much before tonight," I cautioned. 

"That's why Dolls is on babysitting duty," she called back. 

"Thanks Dolls!" I called from the staircase. 

"Get some sleep Haught," he called back. 

I walked down the hallway not knowing where I was going. I opened up the first door on the left to see that it had Dolls' bags in it already. I closed the door then opened the door to my right to see that it was the bathroom. I then went to the next door on the right then quickly closed it seeing that it had personal artifacts inside that definitely didn't look like belonged to Wynonna because it seemed too historical and bubbly for her taste. I kept my grip on the door knob then finally let go. None of my business. I opened the last door on the left and saw my bags lying by the bed. I kicked my shoes off then slid my coat off letting it drop to the floor before flopping onto the bed. It didn't take long after my head hit the pillow to fall into a deep sleep.

 

 

 

 

 

"Alright. I'm going to go put this one down in that room by the bottom of the stairs," Dolls announced while hoisting Wynonna up onto her feet. 

"Oh come on Dolls. I'm perfectly fine," Wynonna said through some hiccups. 

"I know and you'll be even more perfect lying down," he reasoned weakly knowing that it didn't take much to convince Wynonna once she was thoroughly wasted. 

"You're right. Take me away!" She said throwing her hand up as if leading a charge. 

Dolls sighed. "I'll see you two in the morning." 

I laughed as Dolls lifted Wynonna over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes then carried her inside. Wynonna held tight to her unfinished bottle of Jack and kept drinking over Dolls shoulder. I looked over to Waverly to see her laughing into the sleeve of her shirt. She had gotten here sometime while I was asleep and changed into some jeans and a long sleeved T-shirt. Surprisingly the weather out here was pretty chilly. Waverly explained that the reason why that was was because we were out in the middle of the desert and the days are usually hot while nights cooled down to where you needed a light jacket, at least when it came to the summer. Apparently winter is a whole different thing. 

I pushed off the wall to join Waverly by the wood railing that was sturdier than the wood seemed to look despite its age. She had her arms crossed over her chest and was staring out past the arching entrance to the Homestead at the dark of the night. I leaned back against the railing and held out my own bottle of Jack to her. She shook her head to the offer then I placed the bottle on the floor and off to the side so I wouldn't knock it over. 

"So I have heard about most of the shenanigans you three get up too, but I have never heard the story of how you and Wynonna became friends," Waverly spoke softly heavy with curiosity. 

I crossed my arms and looked at her with an amused smile. "She never told you how she met me?" 

She shook her head no. "She doesn't really care for how she meets people. She's more concerned for how those people end up fitting in her life which is why I know about some of the crazy things you've done together before tonight." She smiled up at me. 

I bobbed my head. "You're right about that, but my story isn't as entertaining as Dolls finding her in one of the archaeology practice dig sites on campus." 

"Yeah her stomach really led her into that friendship." 

"Well Dolls does make good bacon and cheese breakfast sandwiches and pancakes."

She nodded her head. "Very true, but what's your story?" 

I tilted my head back then looked at the ground. "My ex-roommate had invited me to go to this party some guy in her class had invited her to. She asked if I wanted to go and I of course said yes because I didn't have any friends there yet and plus I got stressed out from just reading the amount of assignments I had in my syllabi. So we got to the party and things were going great for a while where I started to make some friends with a couple of girls and some guys hanging out by the alcohol table." I glanced at her to see she was rubbing her hands up and down her arms to try to warm up. I slipped my jacket off and slid it onto her shoulders as I turned to lean forward on my elbows on the railing. She smiled and pulled the jacket tighter around her. "At some point a jackass from my high school had come to the party already drunk and spotted me right away because it's not very easy for me to blend in in a crowd." 

"Yeah that red hair and extra four inches are a dead giveaway and makes me wonder how you and Wynonna get away with all that you do," she teased. 

I laughed. "Yeah well that's where Dolls comes in." 

She laughed along with me then bumped my side. "Then what happened?" 

"He was his typical homophobic self and started to call me a bunch of very unfriendly terms which drew a crowd over to us. A few people joined him and the people I had started making friends with stepped away and didn't want to get involved. So while I was telling him to shut up and mind his own business and to leave me alone, I saw a fist at the corner of my eye being swung past my arm and right into his face breaking his nose and knocking him on his butt. When I looked, Wynonna was standing to my side with a pissed off look on her face." I looked over to see that she had slipped my jacket on all the way and that she had the extra length of my sleeves covering her hands. "Everyone shut up then and dispersed to go back to partying. I grabbed the bottle of Jack and Fireball off the table handing them to her then grabbed a bottle of Jose Cuervo and the only bottle of Patron then ushered her out the door to go to a different party not far from where we were at." I smiled and laughed. "We got more drunk during the walks between house parties than at the actual parties because I kept swiping their alcohol before leaving and I ended up having to bare her weight all the way back to her place where we passed out on the couches, but it turns out she had directed me to Dolls place so when I woke up I was confused as hell to see him there because she had told me she lives by herself and was single. But there she was sitting at the breakfast bar with her head on the counter and he was behind the stove making food. All I got from Wynonna was a loud groan and Dolls explained what was going on as he handed me a glass of water and some Advil." 

She shook her head while wearing an amused smile. "What a way to meet Dolls." 

"Indeed and Dolls ended up walking me back to my dorm room after breakfast while Wynonna passed out on the couch again. Then from there they kept showing up to my dorm room looking for me and inviting me out because we kept forgetting to exchange numbers until eventually my ex-roommate shoved a piece of paper with my phone number on it in their faces after they woke her up for like the hundredth time in a week trying to catch me at my dorm."

She stood up straight hugging herself across her stomach. "Well I'm glad she made another dependable friend."

I nodded my head. "The both of them have become family to me and I'd do whatever I could for them." 

"That's good." 

I stood up straight and stretched my arms up above my head. I noticed her eyes on me as I lowered my arms. "I should probably head to sleep since Wynonna has it in her head that we're going to go racing motorcycles down the main road out of town."

"Right. Well here let me give this back then." She began to unzip my sweater, but it got caught partway down. "Dammit!" 

I laughed. "Just hold onto it for me. I'll get it back whenever I feel cold." 

She looked up at me as she struggled with the zipper. "I-I really shouldn't. My boyfriend, man I'm dating, man uhhh....boyfriend will get the wrong idea and I don't want him to get the wrong idea or you know ummm...just let me...hold on okay," she said very flustered. 

I cocked my eyebrow up at her then moved her hands away from the zipper. "Allow me to help you then so your boy man won't get the wrong idea," I said with a bit of a teasing tone. She blushed profusely and I had to crouch down thanks to the five-inch height difference to get at the zipper that was forced halfway down by this point. I managed to wrestle the zipper free where it had gotten stuck on her shirt in her haste to get it off then unzipped it the rest of the way. I stood up and took a step back so she could slip the jacket off and hand it to me. 

"Thanks. I'll uhh...see you tomorrow sometime," she said nervously. 

"Only if you want to or Wynonna drags us to where you're at." 

She backed away and almost tripped on her own foot. She threw her arm out placing a hand on the railing to steady herself. She gave me an embarrassed smile. "R-right of course." She straightened herself out then looked over her shoulder to the door. "Right well. Goodnight Nicole." 

I tried to contain my laugh. "Goodnight Waverly." She almost tripped over the threshold on her way in and threw her hands up with a nervous smile to show she was okay. 

I watched her step into the house then waited for her footsteps to fade away before letting out a laugh at her antics. I slipped my sweater back on noticing that it held a bit of her own scent on it mixed with mine and I fell in love with how they blended together. She was an interesting one for sure and damn adorable, but like she said, she does have a boyfriend. Unfortunate really, but what can I do? 

"You know she may not be as straight as she thinks she is," Dolls said out loud as he came to stand next to me. 

I looked to him seeing that knowing look in his eyes. "It doesn't really matter. She makes her own decisions." 

He nodded his head in agreement. "For the record though. I don't like Champ. She needs someone supportive of all that she is and not just the physical aspect of who she is. She needs someone who understands her interests and won't be dismissive of them." 

"I don't know Champ, so I'm not going to judge and even if I do get to know him, that's who she wants to be with." 

"I know. I'm just letting you know my thoughts."

I stretched my arms up again then twisted my back from side to side to pop it. "I'ma head to bed. I'll see you in the morning." 

"Goodnight," he said with a too calm voice. 

"Goodnight," I responded in kind.

I went into the house and passed by the downstairs room to see Wynonna lying on her stomach dead to the world around her. I walked up the creaky steps and heard the sound of steps scurrying away as quickly as possible. I snapped my head up in time to see the back of Waverly disappear into her room. I tried not to laugh at her behavior, but it was too cute not to. For now, I slipped into the room I would be using for the summer, went through my nightly ritual of getting ready for bed, then fell asleep to the vision of the beautiful woman who has found her way into being a permanent fixture of wonder in my mind. I hope that I can discover firsthand how fascinating her mind is instead of relying on what Wynonna and Dolls have told me. It would be nice to see the different sides of her whenever I get the chance.

But then there was also the nagging worry at the back of my mind that I was playing with fire by thinking about dating my best friend’s little sister if the opportunity were to present itself. This is one conflict that wasn’t going to get solved in a day or even a thousand.


	2. Around You

**_Waverly_ **

I opened my door slightly and peaked through the sliver of space to the door across from mine. I tried to keep my breaths steady and quiet as I waited to see if the door would open. I counted to one hundred and twenty before opening my door enough for me to silently slip out into the hallway then slowly closed the door behind me doing my best not to make any loud noises. Then I tip toed down the hall and took the stairs one step at a time as gently as I could trying not to put too much of my body weight on the creaky stairs. Once at the bottom of the staircase, I peered into the renovated room around the corner to the left that Wynonna was using for the summer and saw that she wasn't lying there with a hangover. I turned and softly walked over to the kitchen where I saw Wynonna with her head down on the table and a cup of coffee cradled in her hands in front of her. 

"Someone looks like they're having a rough morning," I joked as I scanned the kitchen then looked into the living room. 

"Yeah well I may have had one too many last night...and this morning," she responded after lifting her head. 

I made my way to the fridge grabbing the carton of orange juice out of it and the carton of eggs. "Did you eat already?" 

She leaned into the palm of her hand. "No. Was waiting for Dolls to come back from his morning jog with Nicole to make pancakes." 

The carton slid out of my grasp and I caught it with my other hand. "Okay," I said trying to sound normal. "Do you want me to get you anything in the meantime?" 

She groaned and rubbed her temples. "Nope," she answered. I humphed and took a drink of my orange juice before getting a pan out to make myself some scrambled eggs. "Dolls mentioned that you talked to Nicole last night," she said as the egg yolks sizzled as they hit the pan. 

I froze for a split second then reached for a third egg as swiftly as I could in hopes she didn't see my hesitation. Dammit Dolls! "I did," I answered simply. 

"So what do you think of her?" 

She's hot, beautiful, intriguing, and her smile is to melt for. Focus Waverly! I stared at the pan and mixed the yolk and egg whites together as I scrabbled them giving myself time to form an acceptable answer. "She seemed sweet and considerate," I finally answered hoping she didn't read into the prolonged silence before I gave my answer. 

"That she is," she confirmed. 

I left the eggs and reached for the bread on top of the fridge and put two slices into the toaster. "Why do you like her?" I asked trying to get more information about who Nicole is. 

"She told you about how we met right?" 

"Yes." 

"Then that's explanation enough." 

I rolled my eyes. "Could you give me a straight answer for once?" I grabbed the strawberry jam out of the fridge and a plate out of the cupboard. I plated my eggs and set it on the table with two forks as the toast popped up. 

Wynonna reached for one of the forks and took a bite of my eggs as I put jam on the toast and set them down on a separate smaller plate. "Nicole is righteous, loyal, fun, serious, calm, and caring." 

I bit into the toast. "What does all of that mean exactly?" 

She reached over and grabbed the other piece of toast and took a large bite out of it. "What that means is that she could've stayed with her ex-roommate or even the new friends she made, but she came with me instead and looked out for me when she could've ditched me on the side of the road or at some other party especially since she had so many girls trying to ride that Haught-rod," she smirked at her own horrible pun. 

I rolled my eyes and took a bite of my eggs. "Continue," I prompted. 

She wiped a few bread crumbs away from the corner of her mouth. "She's up for a night out of drinking and for whatever trouble I can think of to get us into, but at the same time she's not afraid to shut me down or force me to put my studies first. She's also not afraid to call me out on my bullshit or anyone else's for that matter." She shoveled another bite of eggs into her mouth. "She's quick to stand up for other people when they can't do it for themselves or no one else is willing to do it and at times she can be so calm that it’s almost scary and you think you've done something wrong to piss her off. Hell even Dolls gets scared during those moments even though he does the same thing sometimes. But it’s not like that for her. She's just able to sit back and look at a situation for all of what she can see and interpret and decide the best course of action." She set her fork down on the side of my plate. "You'll know when you piss her off because she'll first try to remove herself from the situation, but if that doesn't work she has no problems with getting physical."

"She's a fighter?" 

"Only when there's no other choice or someone is being too unruly. I wouldn't want to purposefully be the one to catch her right hook to the face since I know what getting it on accident feels like." She tapped the left side of her jaw. "That was one hell of a bar fight that time." 

I smiled at the image of sweet Nicole in the middle of a bar fight. "What else is there about her that makes you want to keep her around as a friend?"

She sucked on her teeth and leaned back into her chair. "Her heart." She smiled and looked away toward the kitchen window. "I've seen her heart and if she didn't hold me back I'd probably have beaten up all the women she's dated who have taken advantage of her. She's a patient lover and one who cares so much for another that you can see it in all of the little actions she does for them. She doesn't force nor push her partners to do things they don't want to do. She's compassionate and trusting. She's willing to put her heart on her sleeve for you and see the stars in your eyes. As a friend she's the one you want on your side because she'll defend you even when you're wrong and put you in your place after everything has been dealt with. She cares for you as if you were her family and she will love you with all of what she can give and she's the most understanding and open minded person I know beside Dolls. She won't ever judge and she'll always listen or just sit there in silence if need be. She will even try to say or do anything to make you smile." She picked up her mug and went to set it in the sink. 

"So you trust her a lot then?" 

She turned and leaned against the sink. "I do and that's not easy to get from me." 

I nodded my head and finished up my food. "So is there anything else about Nicole I should know about?" 

"No. If anything you'll make your own opinions of her the more time you spend around her."

Well I can for sure say she has caught my attention with her shoulder length red hair, long legs, and confident smile, but that's not something I'm going to advertise to Wynonna or anyone else. "I think she's nice so far." And chivalrous as well as flirty. 

Wynonna nodded her head then came back to rest her head on the table. "That's a given." 

The front door creaked open and I leaned over to see who came in which is ridiculous since only three other people would just walk in without knocking and one of them was having me thinking things I've never thought I'd ever be thinking about another woman and truth be told it’s a bit unnerving. 

Dolls came in shirtless and made his way straight to the fridge. Wynonna lifted her head and seemed to be struck dumb by his physique and her eyes were not shy about roaming over his body. Now that is interesting and something I will file away for later to ask her about. 

Then Nicole walked in in just a sports bra and shorts and her hair up in a bun with stray hairs sticking out and clinging to the sides of her neck. My mouth went dry at the sight of her toned muscles and I had to fight the compulsion to lick that one bead of sweat traveling down the center of her abs. 

And what the hell am I even thinking about? 

I looked up at her eyes trying to seem casual, but the slight smirk on her face told me that she knew exactly what I was doing and probably thinking about. She looked down at the ground and walked over to the kitchen cabinets and grabbed a glass out of it then filled it with the tap water from the sink. 

I picked up my plate and maneuvered around her placing my dishes in the sink to be washed later when I got home from work if Dolls didn't do it himself. I did my best not to look at Nicole again or else I will definitely start blushing at being caught staring. 

I bent down and kissed Wynonna on the top of her head now that she had it resting on the table once more. "I'll see you after work. Let me know if you're going to be home for dinner so I know to cook extra."   
She sat up and leaned her face into the palm of her hand. "I'll let you know if we end up bringing home dinner or not as well so you don't end up cooking for nothing." 

"I would appreciate that." I began to back out of the kitchen. "Sorry I can't stay longer, but I'll see you later Dolls and Nicole," I said trying to keep my voice even as I said Nicole’s name. 

A speck of amusement filled Dolls eyes as he leaned against the counter and drank his juice. "See you later Little Earp." 

"Have a good day Waverly," Nicole said sweetly. 

I waved and nodded my head then dashed up the staircase to my room to get ready for my day. I threw on a Shorty's tank top and some jeans then grabbed my bag and sprinted out of the house not wanting to have to go through my goodbyes all over again and see Nicole still there with sweat glistening off her skin. 

I sighed and started up Gus' truck then took off to the saloon. I really need to get my life together and put Nicole out of my mind. I mean I am straight. Just a straight girl who is finding another girl very beautiful and charming. Yes. That's exactly what it is. She's just very beautiful and I admire her for it. 

Maybe if I say that a few more times it actually will work. I groaned. Yeah right. 

 

 

 

 

 

I stared into nothingness and was snapped out of my head by a pair of strong arms wrapping around my waist and a sloppy kiss pressed to my cheek. I set down the glass I didn't even realize I was still wiping clean and tried to excavate myself from the arms of my boyfriend. He snuggled in closer and I resigned myself to being held by him trying to take comfort in his embrace. 

"I thought you were busy today?" I asked Champ. 

He pressed a few quick kisses to my cheek. "I am, but I haven't seen you in a while and wanted to come say hi and give you a hug." 

I smiled and wrapped my arms over his. He can be annoying most of the time, but then he has his sweet moments. "When do you have to get going?" 

"In a bit." He pulled away and I was able to turn around. "I just have to clean out the junk in my dad's barn and he's willing to give me a good amount of cash for it which means we're closer to getting out of here and getting a bar of our own," he said happily. 

I did my best not to roll my eyes. "I told you I'm going to college at the same place as Wynonna for the next couple of years." 

He gave me a confused look. "You were serious about that?" 

And there is his air headedness. "Yes Champ. We went over this already." 

He frowned. "Well what about when I do work up the money to get a bar of my own, will you come with me?" 

I looked around and saw the doors opening to show Gus walking in for the day. "I don't know Champ. Depends on when you work it all out and if we even stay together while I'm away at college." 

He smiled boyishly. "Of course we'll stay together. I'm not letting go of a pretty girl like you." He leaned in and kissed me eagerly and I put my hands against his stomach and gave him a light push before he could get too carried away. 

I looked over to see Gus' look of annoyance. "I have to get back to work and you need to get to work. I'll talk to you later," I dismissed. 

He leaned in and gave me a peck on the lips. "I'll see you later beautiful." He jogged out of the bar and I smoothed my hands down my shirt to help calm me down. 

"You know I don't like you with that boy," Gus commented. 

"So you've said a hundred times before." 

"And I will say it a hundred times more. He has big dreams, but no real drive to make them happen. He's a good kid, but he's that type of kid that can end up getting you stuck in the mud for the rest of your life and regretting every minute of it." 

I rolled my eyes and picked up another glass to begin cleaning it. "I'm not going to get stuck here." 

"Uh huh. You using protection?" She walked pass me then picked up another glass and cleaning rag. 

"That is so not your business, but if it'll put you at ease then yes I am. I'm not looking to have any kids before I'm ready to." 

"Good. You have a future Waverly and it doesn't include this god forsaken town." 

"I know. You've said that a lot before too." 

She set her glass down then wrapped her arm around me and pulled me in to kiss my temple. "You're special Waverly and I just want you to do things on your terms and not lose focus just because some pretty face has distracted you." 

Nicole's face instantly came to mind and I scrubbed my glass a bit harder. "I know. I have things handled." 

"Good. Now hand me another glass. It's almost Happy Hour." 

I handed her another glass and we worked our way through them to get ready for Happy Hour. 

I found myself going through the usual motions of getting ready for Happy Hour, but the fact that I had thought of Nicole instead of Champ when Gus was talking sent me off balance. I mean I am straight. I've only dated men and I've always only been interested in men. I've never had any attraction to other women and no one here has ever caught my attention, but that also can be what the issue is. Maybe it’s just the women here that don't catch my attention since I've spent my entire life around them and don't like any of them and their horrible attitudes. I mean the men aren't much better, but dating them is what's expected of me and Champ really is a good guy even if he's not the sharpest knife in the drawer. 

That's probably the other thing. I'm expected to date the cool guy or the nice guy or the good looking guy. It’s all that everyone ever talks about. Going to the dance with the school's hero or scoring a date with the guy that all the other girls want. If you don't talk about guys or aren't interested in dating guys, then you were socially outcasted. There was no room for you in the popular group if you didn't find everything they were talking about interesting or doing what was considered cool. I did what I could to be seen as cool and different from my sister who made it a point to piss everyone off that at times I had to sacrifice doing the things I really wanted to do in fear of being seen as exactly like my sister or weird. 

It was enough that people said my family was cursed since we tended to die a lot because of alcohol addiction and shooting accidents from trying to emulate the great Wyatt Earp as well as those times where the gambling debt got too big to pay and there was no real out except for in a coffin, but there was also what happened with Wynonna and Willa. Willa was caught in the crossfire of our daddy trying to shoot his way out of being taken by the loan sharks he kept borrowing money from and Wynonna had taken up one of daddy's guns he kept hidden and tried to save him, but instead she ended up shooting him in the back of the head instantly killing him. From there she got sent away to try to treat her and make sure she ended up alright, but in the end she ended up like any other Earp. She began drinking and causing trouble just to cause trouble. I once remember her saying that if everyone was going to treat her like horse shit on the bottom of their shoes then she has no problem with fucking with them. It was even worse since not everyone who attacked our house was arrested that night because the only believable witness had shot her own father and only one set of DNA was found on our father as he had the chance to scratch someone when he was dragged out in front of the house. 

The kids called her a killer and a fuck up. They said who in their right mind would kill their own father, so she pissed everyone off more than once just because she could. This is what I had to live with growing up because the stories were still circulated and passed down from one sibling to another as well as at parties where the older kids would show up only to crash it. Everyone already thought that I was like Wynonna and it took a lot to build up my own name and do whatever it took no matter if I wanted to or not. I just wanted to get out from under Wynonna's shadow. 

Nicole is just one of those things that I want to do, but I guess I'm scared of how people will react. I'm scared of what that will mean for me. I mean I thought I knew who I was and what I wanted and even though what I want hasn't changed, who I am is something I didn't think would change. I mean I know people do change as they get older, but I never really thought that the basics of a person does. Yet seeing Nicole and seeing how sweet she was when she gave me her jacket without question and that swagger she had going on with knowing who she is and what she's got was drawing me in wanting to know more about her. I want to see more of the Nicole that Wynonna has put so much trust in and seeing for myself all of who she is, but I guess that's where some of my fear comes from as well. 

This is an unknown for me and I hate not knowing. I hate not having a rational answer for things. Nicole is an unknown because this is the first time I've come across this dilemma. If I get to know Nicole more will I want to be with her even more than just this initial attraction I have going on? If I don't get to know Nicole will my attraction just fade away into simply admiring a beautiful woman? 

I mean what is the right answer to all of this? 

Seriously though. I mean I haven't ever wanted to kiss someone until they couldn't breathe solely based on a first meeting until she walked into this damn saloon. I haven't wanted to pin someone down and spend time exploring their body as much as I do with her after seeing her post-workout. I haven't wanted to wear someone's jacket or sweater as much as I do hers after feeling how comforting it was to wear her jacket even though the sleeves were too long and it slipped off my shoulders just a little bit and reached down to mid-thigh. Even though Champ's jacket fits the same way it just doesn't feel the same. Plus, her jacket had this scent of apples, cigarette smoke, sweat, and chocolate which was oddly more appealing than the Axe body spray Champ uses along with his foul barnyard smell.  
Besides this, there was also the way my hands got sweaty and how my heart rate seemed to quicken as if a race care was driving the Indie 500 in my chest. I felt more compelled to smile and my mood seemed to be uplifted whenever I saw her. It’s strange really. I don't even know her and yet she has my stomach all twisted up and I'm enjoying it. She has me on the edge of a cliff when it comes to my nerves and I really want to take that leap to see where I end up falling. 

I'm insane. That's exactly what it is. I'm insane and losing my mind. I can't feel this way. I can't feel this way for a woman. I especially can't be feeling this way about someone just on the first day of knowing them. Nope. Not happening. 

"If you think any harder you'll burn your brain cells before even getting to college," Gus said snapping me out of my chaotic thinking. 

"Sorry. Just a lot on my mind." 

"Clearly." She took the glass I was cleaning out of my hand and set it down. "What's going on in that head of yours?" 

I folded up the rag and set it down then leaned forward on the bar top. "It’s nothing really."

"If it was nothing it wouldn't be distracting you so much." She gave me a look that said I better starting spilling or I'll be cleaning up by myself for the rest of the week. 

I sighed and pulled the rubber band out of my hair then began to pull my hair back into a low ponytail again. "I just thought I had myself figured out by now, but I'm thinking that that's not true at all or at least not completely." 

She put the glass and rag down then leaned on the bar. "You're smart darling and I don't doubt you have yourself all figured out, but you only have yourself figured out according to this place. There's a whole other world outside Purgatory and you might find pieces of yourself out there that you didn't know about or you might not. But no one ever really knows all of who they are, so there's no point in worrying about discovering yourself or slapping labels on yourself right now. You're going off to college at the end of the summer and there'll be plenty of things that will test you once you get out there." 

Or test me when they arrive here. "I guess you're right." 

"Yes now get on to the back and check to make sure that the beer kegs are filled for the tap." 

I rolled my eyes and smiled before leaving to go check on the beer. 

She's right about things possibly changing when I go off to college, but me liking girls romantically was not one of those things that came to mind. I think for the most part it might be the shock of seeing a woman as beautiful as Nicole here in this small country town. She certainly came off as the city type girl that would never be here unless she got lost or in her case was dragged out here by someone. I guess maybe it’s just my curiousness for new people and for a part of the world I haven't seen yet that draws me to her since she can answer some questions for me about the city. That has to be it. I can be too inquisitive for my own good at times. Plus, she's the new girl. That's also cause to get worked up and infatuated and possibly see it as something more. Yes. That's it. Just plain ol' fascination about someone new. 

I checked over the crates of bottled beer and some of the hard liquor noticing that Wynonna was beginning to put a dent in our stock after being here for only a day so far. We may have to order extra to replace whatever she ends up drinking. 

I walked out from the back and was met by the radiant smile of Nicole as she turned to look at me thanks to the sound of my boots against the wood flooring. She smiled even wider and beckoned me over with a jerk of her head. I wiped my hands against my jeans and made my way over pushing back a stray strand of hair that ended up escaping my ponytail. I took my usual spot behind the bar and placed my hands on the bar top in order to grip onto something to steady myself. 

"How's your day going so far?" Nicole asked sounding genuinely interested in what I have to say in answer. 

I glanced down at the bar top nervously. "I'm doing alright. Slow as usual during the late morning and mid-afternoon, but it should pick up since Happy Hour is about to start." 

"So there's no chance of stealing you away from here?" She asked with a glint of mischief in her eyes. 

I tilted my head to the side then leaned forward on the bar. "And where exactly would you be stealing me away to?" 

She leaned forward as well drawing closer to me, but still leaving a respectable amount of space between us. "Well you see there may have been a hiccup with Wynonna's plans to go motorcycle riding," she began. 

"Oh. And what is this hiccup you speak of?" 

She leaned in a bit more conspiratorially. "I don't know how to ride a motorcycle," she whispered then pulled back drumming her hands against the bar. "And Wynonna and Dolls don't want to let me ride behind them, so they said either I learn quickly or I find someone who can ride that won't mind taking me." She leaned onto the bar once more. "Of course I thought of you since you're the only other person I know here and Wynonna mentioned that you knew how to ride, so I was wondering if you wouldn't mind being my riding partner," she said giving me a cocky grin to show that I definitely wasn't chosen just because I was her only option. 

I stood up straight and looked over to Gus. "Let me just ask Gus real quick, so wait here." 

"Where else would I go?" She teased. 

I rolled my eyes then picked up one of the cleaning rags and threw it at her playfully. She laughed and tossed the rag back behind the bar as I turned to go bother Gus. "Hey Gus may I ask you a question?" 

"Sure thing," she answered.

"Wynonna's friend Nicole wants to know if I could head out with her and the other two this evening." 

"Where exactly will you lot be going?" 

I shrugged. "Not sure. She didn't say." 

Gus placed her hands on her hips then looked pass me to Nicole. She gave Nicole a good hard look. "I suppose I can let you go. She seems like the responsible type." 

If you only knew. "Great. Will you be fine here alone?" 

She waved me off. "I'll be fine. Not like many people come here and go crazy."

"Thanks Gus. I appreciate it." 

She smiled. "Yes yes now go and enjoy yourself." 

I happily exited from behind the bar and grabbed Nicole's hand. "She said yes now let's go before she changes her mind." I dragged her outside where Gus's truck was parked and Wynonna was polishing her motorcycle that Curtis left her for what could possibly be the hundredth time today and Dolls who was lying on his rented one with his feet propped up on the handle bars. 

"Well you two make it seem like I was in there for an hour," Nicole said fiegning offense. 

Wynonna shrugged and tucked the polishing rag into her back pocket. "Just thought I'd give beautiful a little wipe down before we head out," she answered. 

"And here I thought I was your beautiful," Nicole teased. 

Wynonna smirked. "Wrong. You're my Haught partner in crime." 

"And that makes me what?" Dolls asked as he stretched and the sound of his shoulder popping filled the air. 

"Dolls you’re my GI Joe," Wynonna answered confidently. "Now let's go. We're burning daylight!” 

Dolls straddled his bike and put his black full face helmet on clicking his visor down as Wynonna put a pair of sunglasses on and some black leather gloves. I walked over to the vacant bike and reached for the two different helmets sitting on top of it and held them up in front of me between me and Nicole noticing one was red and the other black. 

"Do I have to guess and see which one you chose for yourself?" I asked Nicole. 

She smiled and got closer tapping a finger on the top of each helmet. "Would it help if I said I have a pair of goggles for myself and sunglasses for you?" 

"Not at all since both of these require one of those two options."

She hummed and looked questionably at the helmets. She lifted the red half helmet and placed that one on my head then grabbed the black open face one for herself. She opened up the side saddle bag and pulled out a pair of sunglasses and goggles as I clicked on the chin strap and adjusted it. I got closer to her and held my hands behind my back inviting her to put my sunglasses on for me. She did her best to contain her grin, but failed as she slid the sunglasses on over my eyes then quickly went about getting her chin strap and goggles on. 

I straddled the bike and pushed the kickstand up then started the engine. I felt the shifting of the bike as Nicole settled in behind me then felt her long arms loosely circle around my waist and her chin rest on my shoulder. A shiver went down my spine at the contact of her bare arms against mine and the way her arms felt comforting and safe around me as if she was protecting me from falling off the bike instead of the other way around. 

"You're not going to let us fall are you?" She asked with a hint of worry and fear in her voice. 

I gulped down my own nervousness of having her pressed up against my back. "Of course not. One of the many perks of having an uncle who was crazy about motorcycles." 

"Okay," she said sounding skeptical. 

"Are you two ready to go?" Wynonna asked as she sat waiting in the middle of the road with Dolls just slightly behind her. I didn't even need to see Dolls’ eyes to know he had an amused look in them as he looked at us through his helmet.

I pulled up next to Wynonna trying not to jump at the feeling of Nicole tightening her grip around me. "Ready when you are," I answered. Wynonna revved her engine then took off down the road followed closely by Dolls. I stayed behind a moment to rub a soothing thumb over Nicole's arm. "You ready?" I asked her. 

"As ready as I'm going to be," she answered nervously. 

I gripped onto the handle bars then took off following behind Wynonna and Dolls catching up to them easily. 

We had no problems with following Wynonna to wherever it is she decided she wanted to go. It was luckily a very hot day, so the wind whipping against my bare arms was reliving especially since I had Nicole against my back. It wasn't too bad since she also decided to wear a tank top, so there wasn't added heat from wearing too many layers of clothing although if it gets later into the night there will be a chill and we'll probably spend a lot of time shivering because of the wind beating against us. 

Steadily the death grip Nicole had adopted when we first headed out slowly started to relax into something that was still tight enough to not send her flying, but also not so tight that it felt like she was squeezing the air out of my lungs. It was more comfortable and relaxed to where she was either slumped against me or sitting up as straight as she possibly could to look around at the desert passing us by or to enjoy the sense of freedom that comes with riding. 

It was easy to stop thinking or caring about anything other than the road and the feeling of the elements all around you. There was a new appreciation to take from being submerged in your surroundings and surrendering yourself to whatever the world decides to throw at you whether it be a nice sunny day or a cloudy rain filled one. Either way, it felt good to get lost in something outside of yourself and it was also nice to be sharing this with someone. Having Nicole at my back and feeling her response to everything by the way her arms tightened or loosened or the way her weight settled heavily on my back or was absent gave me a whole new wave of awe to submerge myself in. Things do tend to feel different and sometimes even better when shared with someone else. 

We pulled off onto a dirt road and took that all the way up until Wynonna was slowing down to a stop at a small shack stationed in front of a make shift shooting range. 

We all slowed to a stop then shut our engines off. "Where are we exactly?" I asked as I tried not to feel disappointed at Nicole climbing off and onto the dirt floor. 

"A little place that Nedley built," Wynonna said pulling out her rag from her back pocket and beginning to wipe down her motorcycle. 

"Please tell me you asked for permission to be here," I implored. 

She shrugged. "I asked for permission." 

I rubbed my temples and shook off my frustration. "You know what? I'm not even going to stress about this or the night will be ruined." I climbed off the bike then hung my helmet over the handlebar. 

Wynonna smirked then finally got off her bike and headed to the shack then pulled out her lock picking tools. I turned around not wanting to actually see her break into the rundown shack. Nicole looked at me curiously and I shook my head not wanting to talk about it. Her eyes turned compassionate as she came up to my side and clasped my elbow caressing her thumb against it comfortingly. The sound of the lock being released filled the air and then the creaking of the doors as they were pulled open.

"Now that's what I'm talking about," Wynonna said excitedly. 

I patted Nicole's arm then turned around to look in the shack and see the wall of guns and table of bullets. "Well that's one thing Champ didn't tell me about since he works on Nedley’s land all the time," I said as I tried to contain my own excitement. 

"He doesn't even know this place exists," Wynonna explained. 

"How would you know that?" I asked. 

Wynonna walked up and grabbed a long barrel revolver off the wall. "Because I've been thrown in the cells so many times you end up hearing things when they pass by or are taking their sweet time to book people. Besides, would you trust Champ anywhere around guns?" 

I nodded my head believing her. "You have a point. I'm just going to assume you have permission for this as well." I stepped inside the shack and pulled the shotgun off the wall and a box of shells then slung the shotgun onto my shoulder and walked off to the shooting range. Might as well enjoy myself. 

"That's my sister," Wynonna said proudly following behind me. 

Soon enough we were engrossed in shooting and drinking the few bottles of water Dolls brought and just having fun. I was especially enjoying watching the muscles on Nicole's arms flex as she worked with the Glock and how nice her ass looked as she took a professional stance while shooting. I also couldn't help putting in more effort to look like a badass since I felt Nicole's eyes on me whenever I would take a turn with my shotgun. Her appreciative look in her eyes was definitely satisfying to see whenever I would turn back to look at her. 

Of course all good things must come to a horrible end with Wynonna, two pairs of headlights came up the road and parked right next to our bikes. 

"Looks like I win the bet as to who would be crazy enough to come onto my property and use my things without asking," Nedley called out as he came closer with a few extra officers. 

"What can I say? You're an unknowing gracious host," Wynonna bit back. 

Nedley looked at the four of us and looked at me the longest compared to everyone else. "Corrupting your little sister I see," he said looking disappointed at me. He huffed then shook his head. "You'll pay me back for what you've used up and don't come back here. I'm only letting you go because this is the first time Waverly has been in trouble and because these friends of yours don't need to spend a night in jail because of you," he announced. "But do something like this again and I'm not going to look the other way." 

Wynonna nodded her head and gave one of her placating smiles. "Much appreciated officer," she said then left her gun unloaded and pointing at the targets on the table. "Let's go home everyone." 

She waltzed over to her bike as the rest of us unloaded our guns and locked the safeties in place then left them facing toward the targets. 

I stopped by the bike noticing that Nicole wasn’t behind me and looked back to see Nicole pull her wallet out and hand Nedley a few bills. They exchanged a few hushed words then she jogged over to me. I looked over to Wynonna to see her back heeling her kickstand up and Dolls who was on the phone. Neither of them having noticed what Nicole had done. I looked back at Nicole to see her jogging over. She reached pass me not saying a word and pulled something out of the side storage saddle. I watched as she held up a grey hoodie for me to see that said "Shut Up And Run."

"I figured it would be cold on the way back so I have this one or this one," she said holding up a black hoodie that says "Yes I Fell From Heaven And Yes I'm Running Through Your Mind; I Need The Workout." 

I laughed and grabbed the black hoodie. "Where did you even get this one?" I asked while slipping it over my head. 

"Your sister got it for me for Christmas." 

"Of course she did." I finished gearing up and straddled the bike. 

"It's my favorite hoodie for sure." The bike dipped slightly with her weight and her arms circled my waist making me feel as if she was finding her way back home. I really need to get a handle on my emotions. 

"You are bold then." 

"I just know what I like," she said confidently resting her chin on my shoulder. 

That statement caused goosebumps along my arms. I had nothing to say to it and just started up the bike and followed Wynonna all the way home after swapping my sunglasses for Nicole's goggles so I could see properly in the dark. 

It was an easy trip back to the Homestead where Wynonna was happy to sing out loud all the way back even though she can't hold a damn tune to save her life. When we finally got back, Wynonna and Dolls were quick to head inside for some real drinks while Nicole stayed back with me. 

"So I need to ask you a question?" I began as we came up onto the porch and I veered to the side to lean against the railing. 

"Go for it." She slipped her hands into her pockets and waited for my question with rapt attention. 

"Why did you pay Nedley?" 

She gave me an amused smile. "Your sister did warn me that you were very perceptive." 

"What does that mean?" 

She leaned against the post. "It means that it wasn't solely my money I gave him. Wynonna and Dolls had given me money earlier and thought it would be better if I was the one to deal with it since Nedley doesn't hate me and I have an expressive face to show how apologetic I am for the trouble." 

"So it wasn't you just being nice?" 

"If you’re saying that me being okay with being put in front of the firing squad isn't nice enough then I guess no, it wasn't." She looked down at the ground. "Besides your sister would have my head if I tried to pay for her." 

I crossed my arms over my chest. "You're right about that." 

She stood up straight. "Is that all you had to ask me about?" 

I looked at the ground. "Do you want your hoodie back right now?" I looked up to see her eyes looking me up and down and with a self-satisfied smile on her face. 

"No. You can give it back whenever you're done using it." 

I stood up straight and bumped her shoulder playfully as I pushed pass her. "Good because I'm cold and even though this fits me like a dress, its very warm." And it also smells like you now that I'm able to actually appreciate it and I don't want to let it go. 

"Well it does look good on you, so by all means keep it for as long as you want," she said flirtaciously. 

Yup. Quit now while you're ahead. "Right. Well let's get inside then before they think something has happened." 

"And what could possibly happen?" She asked amused at my slip of the tongue. 

"Nothing!" I rushed out in panic then took a breath to calm down. "Nothing. I mean I'm in a relationship and we're just friends and the wolves haven't come out this far in ages and there's no one coming over plus there's nothing that can really happen if we both don't consent to it, not that there is anything for us to do in the first place that would require that right now and I'm just going to shut up now," I said nervously ending my word vomit. 

Nicole's body shook as she tried to contain her laughter, but failed and laughed out into the night which sounded oh so addicting to the point that I would ramble all day if it meant I would get to hear her laugh.   
Once she was calmed down she let out another small laugh before she was completely done. "I won't do anything you don't want me to, so you just have to be honest with me. As your friend," she said putting more emphasis on the word "friend." "I want you to be comfortable around me because I think we could get along well." 

"Right right. Of course. I feel the same. I mean I feel like we could get along as well." 

"Good. Now let's get inside because it is quite chilly out here." 

"Right. Of course." I followed behind her until she held the door open for me and let me in first. 

Right friends. Just friends. Just two people doing friend things and getting to know one another. That's all this is.  
I looked at Nicole as she smiled joyfully at Wynonna and Dolls and felt my heart melt as she turned her smile to me as she tried to include me in the conversation while we waited for the pizza Dolls ordered back at Nedley’s place. 

Right. So still confused.


	3. A Night Out

**_Nicole_ **

I filled the glass up with tap water then leaned against the sink as I downed it as quick as possible even though I know it’s one of the worst things to do after running in the heat for almost an hour. I'm just really thirsty and this heat is ridiculous. How can it be so hot during the day yet so cold during the night? If anything, this whole summer vacation in the desert is going to prepare me for track better than the training camp the coach has us go to the month before school starts. I didn’t want to tell Wynonna, but this is actually why I was able to skip having to go to the training camp this year. I made a deal with the new coach that I will send the data from my Fitbit to my coach to show that I am working out and training this summer and it helps that I'm the best runner on the team even if this is a new coach because he has seen me plenty of times before during competitions to confirm this himself. I get to have more leniency because I do do more than everyone else in order to be and stay the best because if I don't, I lose my scholarship which is something the assistant coaches explained to him to help me get the summer off. 

I turned at the sound of the stairs groaning under someone's weight and watched as Waverly came into the kitchen still wearing my hoodie I let her borrow last night. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes then gave me a small smile before her cheeks turned bright red from probably remembering that she was still in my hoodie. She tugged on the bottom of it then played with the sleeves before she looked to the floor and tucked her hair behind her ear. 

"Morning Nicole," she said shyly after clearing her throat. 

"Good morning Waverly. Did you sleep well?" 

She went to the fridge and got out the gallon of orange juice. "I did. Thanks for asking." 

"Did you want some breakfast?"

She looked at me slightly confused. "No. I mean yes, but no. You shouldn't be making breakfast. You're the guest here this summer. I should be making you something." 

"You don't have to." 

She shook her head and took out the carton of eggs and a packet of bacon. "No I wouldn't feel right if I had you making me breakfast in my own home. I mean I don't even let my boyfriend do that, but actually that's mainly because he can't cook and I'm afraid of food poisoning, so never mind. But no. You sit there and I'll make you some breakfast especially since you probably ran for a long time this morning. Which by the way where's Dolls?" 

I put my hands on her shoulders to stop her and tried to fight the laugh that was bubbling up in my chest. "We can cook together because I don't feel comfortable with just sitting here and watching you do it." I let go of her and reached over for the packet of bacon. "Plus I make really crispy bacon. And to answer your second question, Dolls' workout plan has him resting on Sundays since that's usually when he finishes all of his work since most people are nursing hangovers on Sundays." 

The left side of her mouth curled up into a half smile. "I take it you know this because you and Wynonna are usually at his place on Sundays recovering from a hangover?"

I took the skillet from her hand and placed it on the stove to warm up so I could get started on the bacon. "He has it timed down perfectly to get all his field work hours done early in the morning before coming back to us in the afternoon to feed us then set us up with a lazy Sunday while he works on the finishing touches of his papers." 

"And when do you get your work done?" 

"Between classes, before and after practice, Saturday afternoons between being hung over from Friday night thanks to Wynonna and then going out with her again that night, and then Sundays after I feel well enough to sit up and actually concentrate on the readings." 

"And when does my sister ever do her assignments?" 

"Sundays as well, but she starts and finishes them on that day."

"Seriously?" 

"Yes. She works on them all day then I source check them to make sure everything was cited and quoted correctly as well as that it makes sense then Dolls checks the formatting and proof edits the whole paper to make sure everything is written well. From there Wynonna makes changes of her own and some of the ones we recommend then turns them in." 

"You both help her a lot, don't you?" 

I shrugged my shoulders. "It only sounds that way, but we actually do all of that for each other all the time." 

"Meaning?" 

"Meaning that when I have to go away for track meets, Wynonna prints out my essays and hands them in for me whenever we have a professor who refuses to work with me and only accepts hard copies of everything. Then we both sit and help Dolls out with his presentations making sure to time him and letting him know what he can cut out or what he can skip all together. Plus, Wynonna is in charge of snacks and booking study rooms, Dolls is in charge of proper meals, and I'm in charge of making sure we get outside for a while so we don't lose our minds." 

She plated the eggs and toast while I dumped the strips of bacon down. "You three have a system going on then." 

I set the plates down on the table as she sat down handing me a fork and a cup of orange juice. "We do, but it took a while to get into that rhythm and there are still times where we forget stuff." 

"What exactly could all three of you forget?" 

"There was the time where we forgot flashcards, we got the wrong day and time down for our reserved room in the library, someone didn't bring the dry erase markers, another person forgot the HDMI cable to connect the laptop to the computer to practice presentations, and none of us remembered to buy ink for our printers so we all had to wake up early to print our papers out the second the library opened."

She giggled at this then shook her head. "You three together are certainly interesting." 

I shrugged. "That's what a lot of people say." 

"You think I'd be able to wiggle my way into your little tightknit group?" 

"I think it’s expected since I don't think Wynonna will let you go too far, but if you end up finding your own group that's always good because we're not going to be there forever." 

"I guess you're right about that." 

My hand itched to touch her hand to reassure her, but I held back because I didn't want her to think I wasn't respecting her boundaries. "You don't have to worry about that right now though. Enjoy the summer and let things happen when they do." 

She hummed before taking a drink of her orange juice. "So what are your plans for tonight?" 

I set my fork down on top of my plate then grabbed hers and took them to the sink. "Not sure yet. I have to see what Wynonna and Dolls want to do, but most likely it will be drinking." 

"Is that all you three are going to do this summer?" She reached for the sponge to start washing the dishes while I grabbed a drying cloth to dry them before setting them down in the drying rack. 

"No, but right now I think it’s good to let loose and enjoy not having to be stressed out or sleep deprived thanks to assignments and exams. I'm sure later we'll calm down to doing more reasonable things." 

She handed me my cup of juice after I set the last dish down to finish drying off on the rack. "Well one can only hope that Nedley's make shift shooting range is not on the list anymore." 

I finished off my juice then cleaned and dried my cup. "Well I can't say that I didn't have fun doing that and I know you had fun as well." 

She pressed the side of her hand to her lips while dangling her glass in her fingertips as she did her best to hide a joyful smile. "No I didn't have fun." 

I smiled and took the glass from her fingers forcing her to move her hand from her mouth. "That smile says otherwise." 

She pursed her lips and shook her head. "Nope. No fun at all." 

I narrowed my eyes at her watching her bite her lip to fight the urge to smile widely. "Uh huh sure." I bumped her shoulder with my own and rolled my eyes. 

She hip checked me then laughed as I lost my footing. "Careful now," she teased. 

"So that's how we're going to play this?" 

She held her arms up and made a come here motion with her hands. "Bring it!" 

I tilted my head to the side then took advantage of her raised arms to launch a tickle attack. She squeaked and doubled over to try to get out of my grasp. "Don't mess with a tickle monster!" 

She squealed and laughed as she tried to squirm out of my grasp. I lifted her off the floor when she almost got out of my grasp then set her back down. She did her best to run out of my grasp while laughing. 

"What's going on down here?" Dolls called out as he came down the stairs. 

I released Waverly, but she remained pressed against my front as she tried to catch her breath. "Sorry Dolls. We got into a bit of a playful fight," I answered as he came into the room. 

He looked between me and Waverly and I could see the smile he was holding back on his face in his eyes instead. "Well unlike Wynonna, I don't sleep like a corpse."

"We're sorry," Waverly said as a blush crept up onto her cheeks when she finally took a step away from pressing her back against me. She decided to stand next to me instead. 

"It’s alright. I have to get up eventually because unlike some people, I can't stay in bed all day."

He went to the coffee machine and began to go through the motions of getting it started. 

"To be fair I watch TV, Wynonna sleeps," I clarified. 

"You still have no problems with staying in bed all day whenever you can." 

I tilted my head side to side. "True." 

Waverly pushed off the cabinets then began to walked out of the kitchen. "Well I should start getting dressed. I have a date today then work tonight." 

"Have a good one," I said. 

"You too. See you Dolls," she responded. 

"Bye Little Earp," Dolls answered. 

We listened as Waverly ran back up the stairs to start getting ready for her day. Dolls turned to lean his back against the counter and folded his arms across his chest. He held a smirk in his eyes as he stated at me. I pushed off the counter and turned to wash up the cups we had been using then put them down to dry. I turned to see Dolls still staring at me and I wiped my hands dry with the drying cloth. 

"Are you going to say it or keep standing there?"

"What makes you think I have anything to say?" 

"Because I know you and know that there's something bubbling at the surface that you want to say." 

The corner of his mouth went up slightly then went back to being neutral. "You two get along well."

"I guess so."

"And you seem to have a crush on her," he stated bluntly. 

I tried to seem unaffected by his spot-on analysis. "I don't even know her."

"You didn't deny it, but you also don't have to know every little detail about someone to have a crush," he said smugly. 

I tapped my fingers against the edge of the sink. "So I may have a bit of a crush on her, but that's it." 

The corner of his mouth curled up into a half smile. "Glad you can be honest."

"Right. What are the plans for today?" I asked trying to change the subject. 

The look in his eyes told me he was letting it go out of respect. "Not sure. As far as I know we're probably going to Shorty's tonight to play pool and have a few drinks."

"I take it Wynonna has no plans of waking up anytime soon?" 

"Nailed it." 

"So then what do you want to do because I don't exactly feel in the mood to stay in bed until tonight." 

"I can always grab the truck keys from Wynonna's room and we can drive around town until we find something we want to do." 

"That's fine by me. Let me shower and change first then we can head out." 

"Well while you do that I'm going to make myself some breakfast." 

"See you in a bit then." 

I walked up the stairs and to the room I was staying in to grab some clothes and my other bathroom essentials. I checked my phone to see that there were a few texts from my mother and father and decided to answer them on the way to the bathroom where I ended up bumping into Waverly. I looked up to see that she was fresh out of a shower with her hair soaking wet and her towel held tightly to her. I backed up trying not to focus on how she smelled like vanilla and peaches. It was a weird combination, but it seemed like the right scent for her. She brushed back a strand of her wet hair behind her ear then looked at the ground. 

"Sorry. I wasn't paying attention. Trying to answer my parents’ messages. Also that was a very quick shower."

She nodded her head as a pink hue began to take over her face. "I’m running pretty late. Also, I wasn't paying attention either when I opened the door and barged out. I’m not used to having so many people in this house at once."

"Yeah." I leaned my shoulder against the hallway wall. "Who did live with you here anyway because I haven't ever seen Gus here since we came into town." 

She pursed her lips then looked away to her room. "My uncle Curtis and Gus had their own home that I lived in with them because I was afraid of this house because of what happened here, but Curtis told me that it isn't the house's fault that bad things happened and that a space can be changed to mean many different things, it just depends on the person who decides to take control. So, I decided to take control and I started living here throughout high school with Curtis and Gus maintaining their own home whenever they could." 

"What happens to the house when you leave?" 

"Gus says she'll maintain it until Wynonna and I decide on what to do with it." 

"Well at least it won't be collecting dust."

She gave me a small smile. "Yeah."

I shoved off the wall. "I'll let you go get ready before you catch a cold from standing in only a towel."

She pressed the top part of the towel against her chest tighter. "Right. I'll see you maybe." 

"Yeah. Have fun." 

"You too." She backed up until her back hit her door and she gave an embarrassed smile before slipping into her room. I chuckled then went to take a shower and get ready to head out with Dolls. 

 

 

 

 

 

We had driven around the small town taking in the small buildings of shops, the town hall, the old styled hotels, and passed by the schools. There was no desire to stop anywhere since Dolls kept driving never once making an effort to pause anywhere. It was a sightseeing drive around the town and that was better than trying to force interaction at a place that there wasn't no real interest in being at for either of us. At one point Dolls turned down one of those unmarked dirt roads that get you lost all the time since they’re not marked on a map and pressed down on the gas making the truck catch speed and whip my hair all around since we had the windows down. I leaned out the window and enjoyed the feeling of the wind battering against me. We ended up at what looked like it may have been a great lake in its prime with some scattered trees around in. It was here that we stopped to stretch out our legs and take a look around. 

For Dolls, this spot must look like a good place to do a dig at to see what he can find buried deep in the ground while for me it was the scenery of it with the feeling of time having passed and desertion settled into the bare bones of it. We stayed there for a while walking around the small lake that surprising didn't smell as bad as I thought it would have since it looked like no one ever visited it, but then again it’s probably because no one came here anymore that it must have survived as long as it did because that means that it isn't polluted with trash that people in the city usually throw in the water or left on the ground to be blown by the wind into the water. 

After a while of Dolls picking up different rocks and pocketing a few of the more interesting ones, we headed back to the Homestead where Wynonna was hanging out in the living room watching a TV that was not there when we first got here and the living room rearranged to accommodate it. She turned to look at us while shoving some popcorn in her mouth. 

"Where did the TV come from?" 

She went back to watching the TV. "I talked Champ into taking me to buy one and into hooking it up for me when he came looking for Waverly and I told him that she had left to go meet up with him a half-hour ago for their date, which it’s not surprising that he would forget the time and place for his date. So, since Waverly was refusing to answer her phone to him I convinced him that if he helped me out that he would be on her good side again."

"You didn't tell her did you?" Dolls asked thinking he already knew the answer. 

"As much as I don't like the guy, he's the one she chose. I texted her letting her know he had helped me out. What she does after is her business."

I met Dolls' disbelieved eyes then shrugged my shoulders before heading over to sit on the couch. "So what are we watching?" I reached over and grabbed a handful of popcorn. 

"I don't know. It has zombies in it." 

Dolls stretched out on the other couch. "Better than nothing I suppose," he grunted as he shifted to find a comfortable spot. 

I kicked my shoes off putting them to the side of the couch then settled in to watch the movie. We stayed on the couch watching a marathon of ridiculous horror movies featuring zombies, a new age plague, vampires, and serial killers. After the last movie, we all checked the time to see that it was already nine, so we finally got up and moved around. From there we got ready to head out to Shorty's. I looked in the mirror and decided to leave my hair down because Waverly was going to be there and she hasn't seen me with my hair down yet...not that I'm trying to get her to look at me. I left my room and made my way down the stairs. 

Dolls stared as I came down the stairs. "You left your hair down."

I ran my fingers through my hair. "I just got tired of having it up all the time."

"You sure it’s not because Waverly is working tonight?" He teased. 

I rolled my eyes. "No, but good try at trying to make it about Waverly." 

"It’s not trying if it’s true." 

I narrowed my eyes at him then punched his arm lightly. "Jerk." 

"Oh. You left your hair down?" Wynonna asked as she hopped off the last step. 

"You know you two act like I never leave my hair down." 

Wynonna shrugged. "You always have your hair up because of track and not wanting it in your face during class." 

"I think I'm going to have to let my hair down more often then so you two don't think the world is ending." 

"Well I think you look great either way, but when you let your hair down your softer side glows even brighter." 

"I agree with Wynonna. You look like a bigger softie." Dolls grabbed the truck keys from under the couch cushion. "So are we ready to go?" 

"Tequila!" Wynonna shouted happily leading the way out of the house. 

I shook my head and followed her out the door with Dolls right behind me. Since it was colder and none of us wanted to wear jackets, we all squished into the front of the truck and turned the knobs for the heater until we finally got it to turn on and start working. Wynonna began to blast some rock music followed by her horrendous singing. Dolls and I both tried to tune her out as we traveled over to Shorty's. 

"Finally," Dolls said under his breath only loud enough for me to hear him once Wynonna had parked the truck in front of Shorty's. 

I shook my head and ran my fingers through my hair massaging my scalp along the way to work out the headache that was beginning to form. Normally I wouldn't mind her singing, but tonight was not one of those nights. "Let's get inside before she starts again," I said pushing Dolls ahead of me. He tsked as he walked up to hold the door open for us.

"Alright. You and Dolls grab a pool table and I will order the drinks," Wynonna instructed as she veered off to the bar. 

"I'm only going to have an easy night," I said to Dolls. 

"We'll see," he responded. 

He took over a pool table after two other guys had left their cue sticks on it along with their empty beer bottles. They went over to chat up some women in the corner, so Dolls threw me one of the vacated cue sticks and began to rack up the balls. It wasn't too busy in here for it being the only bar in town. I easily spotted Waverly speaking with Wynonna as she popped the tops off three beers and filled three shot glasses. Her eyes traveled away and locked onto mine before quickly looking back to Wynonna. A shade of pink crept into her cheeks. 

"If you stare any harder you may cause a fire," Dolls joked. 

I glared at him as he smirked. "Shut up and break." 

He set up his shot then took it causing the balls to scatter a solid color one to fall into the corner pocket. "You got stripes." 

He set up his next shot sinking it in one of the pockets in the middle then another in the same corner as the first one. He missed his fourth shot and I got the chance to start working my game. I put three away quickly in the opposite end of the table and sunk a fourth one between two of his into one of the middle pockets. I miscalculated the fifth ball and gave him the table. 

"Are we doing two out of three or winner plays?" Wynonna asked as she set our drinks down on the edge of the pool table. 

"Winner," Dolls answered as he sunk two shots, but messed up the speed of the third one leaving it on the edge of falling into the pocket. 

I walked over and grabbed one of the beers then waited for Dolls to come over before grabbing up one of the shot glasses. "What are we toasting to?" 

"A great summer of course," Wynonna answered. 

"To a great summer then," Dolls said.

"A great summer," I chimed in then we clicked our glasses together and downed them in a second. We chased our shots with our beer then kept playing. 

I ended up beating Dolls when he decided to call out his shot and fell short of what he had been attempting to do. Wynonna is the one neither of us can ever really beat unless we get her drunk enough since she's been playing pool for years for both fun, money, and objects. Pretty sure she said she once played a guy for his car that she then ended up totaling because the other driver was texting while driving and ended up running a red light and straight into her. At least she gives us the courtesy of starting first before she demolishes us in one run, like right now. I stood off to the side and watched as she began to clear the table. 

"I forgot how good she was." I turned to see Waverly had snuck up beside me with three beers in her hands. "Here. I thought you three could use a refill." She handed me one of the beers she was holding. 

"Thank you. I appreciate it." I took a swig from it then held it against my side. "I can't beat her unless she's pretty much on her way to wasted." 

A small smile tugged at her lips. "Our daddy taught her how to play before he passed away and she got obsessed with it for a long time. I think it was one of the only things that got her through all of the horrible stuff that happened after that."

"I can see how that could take your mind off everything for a while." 

"Yeah. It’s nice to see that she enjoys playing it now instead of it being something to distract herself." She placed the other two beers down on the edge of the pool table then stood back with me.  

"How's your day been so far?" 

"Aside from my boyfriend forgetting about our date, it’s been pretty good. I haven't had any issues with anyone here today, but it’s still early enough for something to go wrong."

"Well you just jinxed yourself, so prepare for something to happen tonight." 

"I should've knocked on wood."

"Not like there isn't enough wooden surfaces here. I mean I am holding a wooden cue stick." I tilted the cue stick in her direction and she eyed it for a second. 

"I think I'll take my chances tonight." She pushed the cue stick until it was pressed against my chest. 

"Dangerous decision there."

She trailed her fingertips down the cue stick before pulling them away. "Sometimes it’s worth it." A playful smile lit up her face until a set of arms came around her waist and a good-looking boy started pressing kisses all along the side of her face, neck, and shoulder. Her smile faded, her body tensed up, and she rolled her eyes then stared at the ground. "Champ I'm working right now."

"I know, but I'm still sorry about earlier today," he said as he pouted. I tried to stop myself from rolling my eyes. 

"Well bothering me while I'm working is not going to make everything okay," she responded. 

He rested his chin on her shoulder. "You're not even that busy and you're talking to this girl, which hi by the way." He gave me what he must think is a charming smile. 

"Hello," I answered while trying to sound as nice as possible. 

"Champ this is Nicole, Wynonna's friend," Waverly properly introduced. 

He gave me a quick once over and tightened his grip around Waverly's waist. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." I turned my gaze to the pool table to see Wynonna wiping the floor with Dolls as Dolls stared at me questionably before quickly shifting his gaze to Champ and cocking an eyebrow up asking if I wanted him to intervene. I shook my head and he went back to watching Wynonna kick his ass. As awkward as this is because I have a small crush on her, I have to deal with it.

"What do you do Nicole?" Champ asked drawing my attention back to him as he pressed another kiss to Waverly's cheek. 

She looked uncomfortable, but wasn't moving out of his grasp. "I go to college with Wynonna and run for the track team there."

His face lit up. "Oh that's good, so you can take care of Waverly while she's there," he said happily. 

"I'm sure she's fully capable of taking care of herself." Waverley smiled at my comment and stared at me appreciatively. 

"Well yeah, but a guy's gotta make sure his girl is okay. Right babe?" 

She patted his hand then wiggled out of his grasp. "Nicole is right. I can take care of myself." 

He stared at her confused. "I just want to make sure you're alright when you're there."

"And I will tell you so. I don't need a babysitter." 

"I'm sure if she ever needs help she'll give us a call, besides that I'm sure she's smart enough to do things on her own," I said trying to move on from this topic since I could tell it was beginning to get on Waverly's nerves by the way her hands were tightening into fists then loosening up repeatedly. 

"Yeah yeah right, but a guy's gonna worry," Champ answered with a satisfied smile. 

I couldn't hold back rolling my eyes this time. This guy has no clue as to how he's making Waverly feel right now. So far as I've been able to gauge, she's not incompetent and is fully capable of making her own decisions. Now I am beginning to see why Wynonna and Dolls are not fond of him. He seems to not really understand where Waverly is coming from with what she says. I don't doubt he loves her, but I doubt he truly understands that she's not a girl who needs to be protected; she's a girl who needs to be supported. 

"I need to get back to work," Waverly said dismissively. 

"Maybe I can help you," Champ offered excitedly. 

"It’s not so busy right now, so you can go back to hanging out with your friends."

"You sure?" He threw a longing look over to his friends who were laughing and drinking at the bar top. 

"Yes. Now go ahead."

He pulled her in for a tight hug and pressed kisses all over her face again as she stood stock still. "Thank you!" 

She watched him go then turned back to me. "Sorry about that." 

"No need to apologize." 

"I know, but sometimes he can be too much in front of people." 

I stared at the ground and tapped the end of the cue stick against the floor to stop myself from making a negative sound of judgment. "Well he seems nice."

She wiped her hands down along her shorts. "Yeah, he really is." She clapped her hands together. "Do you need anything else?" 

"A round of shots would be nice."

"Alright I can do that." 

"Thank you." I watched her go back to the bar before rejoining the other two at the pool table. 

"Are you alright?" Dolls asked. 

"Fine."

"What was that all about with my sister?" Wynonna interrupted. 

"Was just letting Champ know that we'll take care of Waverly while she's with us and I got us another round of shots," I answered. 

She rolled her eyes then racked the balls up again. "He needs to get over himself. Just because he was popular in high school doesn't mean that the world revolves around him. Plus, my sister is an Earp, we do just fine on our own." Dolls raised his eyebrows at that then shrugged and broke the next game. 

"Here are your shots," Waverly sing-song as she set them down on the table. 

"Thank you," I said as I reached for a shot. 

"Thanks kid. Just keep these coming along with the beers please," Wynonna added as she grabbed hers. 

"That's no problem. Enjoy." Waverly turned and walked away. 

I watched as she made her way around the bar picking up the empty glasses and bottles then swatting Champ's grabby hands away so she can work in peace. He gave her puppy dog eyes, but I caught the tail end of her eye roll as she turned away to head back behind the bar. Champ's gaze shifted from Waverly's retreating form to the back side of some girl walking by him to a group of her friends. His eyes raked over her body as if he was single and that his girlfriend was not only a few feet away from him. I tightened my grip on my cue stick, but turned away. As much as I would like to call him out on it, I'm not going to embarrass Waverly that way. Its maddening that he would look at another woman like she's lunch when he's already with a beautiful and intelligent woman. 

I looked over to see Waverly smiling brightly and laughing with one of the customers sitting at the bar. I definitely wouldn't be looking at anyone else if I had someone like her to call my girlfriend and that's just based off of what I've seen so far in person and what I know from Wynonna. I took a drink from my beer then began to play against Dolls. Hopefully Champ is as good a guy as Waverly believes him to be and that he's the type of guy to only look at other women and nothing more.


	4. Something To Think About

**_Waverly_ **

I kept glancing across the bar at Nicole as she played pool with my sister and Dolls. I followed the movement of her fingers as she would brush her shoulder length red hair behind her ear before she would line up for a shot. I watched as she leaned over the table and the way she would squint her eye a tad before pulling the cue stick back and taking her shot. I watched as her lips closed around the opening of the beer bottle and how she smiled when Wynonna or Dolls would say or do something slightly amusing. I strained my ear to try to catch the sound of her laughter and my eyes roamed over her body taking in how good she looked in her tight jeans and how soft she seemed to come off as with her hair down and her thin long sleeve shirt. It was nice to see a different side of her shining. It adds more to how beautiful she already is. 

I looked away and took a steadying breath. I then scanned the bar to see if anyone was in need of another drink and landed on Champ and his friends. A feeling of guilt wedged itself into the pit of my stomach as I watched him interacting with his friends. This whole time my eyes have been on Nicole instead of my boyfriend. What is wrong with me? I have a kind and sweet boyfriend, even though he forgot our date, his forgetfulness can sometimes be endearing. He tries so hard for me and yet here I am getting butterflies in my stomach for someone else. Here I am trailing someone else's every movement and finding it memorizing. Why am I doing this in the first place? Nicole is a woman. I don't like women...right? 

I shook my head and grabbed a round of beers for Champ and his friends. This is not the time to be having an existential crisis over my sexuality. I don't like women and that's finale. Nicole being very beautiful as well as caring and kind be damned. She's just another woman and she's Wynonna's friend. Two reasons as to why I should not be thinking about her the way I have been or tracking her as she moved around the bar or the Homestead. 

I went over to Champ and his friends with the beers. "Hey, I brought over more drinks." 

Champ's laugh died down slowly as he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me against him. "Thanks babe. Do you think we can get some shots on the house?" 

I bit my lip then walked out of his grasp. "I told you I can't do that."

"Oh come on. For me? Please." 

I glanced at his friends as they were all looking at me. I grabbed his hand and pulled him to the side to have some privacy. "I told you I can't keep giving you drinks on the house every time you come here with your friends. That money comes out of Gus' pocket and mine as well. Plus, you and your friends don't stop at just one round. You always want more and more."   
"Come on it was just that one time."   
"It was several times."

"Alright, but this time will be different. It’s only going to be one round." 

I sighed and looked around the bar my eyes landing on Nicole again. I shook my head. "Fine. Just one and that's it," I conceded feeling guilty as well as not wanting to deal with anything else today. 

I walked back over to the bar after circling the room and collecting all of the empty bottles and glasses then served up a round for Champ and his friends before doing the same for Wynonna. I also got Wynonna another round of beer and tried not to linger so much next to Nicole as she thanked me and gave me her full attention even though we weren't having a conversation. She didn't turn away from me until after I had left to go back behind the bar to help Gus with washing the glasses. 

I dried out some of the glasses as Gus made her way around the bar collecting more empty ones to wash. "You know you can go be with your boyfriend instead of being behind here," Gus said as she placed the empty glasses in the sink to be washed. 

I turned on the tap to begin rinsing them out before washing them with soap. "I don't mind working." Gus hummed disbelievingly before putting her hand on her waist and giving me the "don't lie to me" look. I sighed and started to wash out the glasses with soap. "So maybe I'm still upset with him for earlier and don't want to be around him right now."

She pursed her lips then dumped out all the empty beer bottles. "You get treated the way you let them treat you." 

"I'm not letting him treat me badly. He's a good guy who tends to be a bit of an airhead sometimes." 

"Did you talk to him about it or sweep it under the rug and continue with your day?" 

"Well I was busy organizing the back when he came in after helping Wynonna."

"There's a difference between talking to him and him not changing his behavior and not talking to him and him continuing his behavior. One is a choice he makes and the other is a choice you make." She placed a round of shots and beers on a tray and set it down on the bar top in front of me. "The ending result of either of those decisions is up to you." She took the glass out of my hands and handed me a rag. "Now take this to Wynonna." 

I sighed and dried my hands before gathering up the tray. I know Gus is right; I just don't like to admit it. Not talking to Champ is not going to change anything, but sometimes I feel like I'm talking to a wall and I don't want to deal with it. I just want things to be easy and to go on smoothly which I know is unrealistic, but if I don't try to fight every single battle then it isn't so hard. I know it may sound unsatisfying, but its fine for me. I don't need greatness or perfection all the time. I am content with how things are right now. 

I glanced up into Nicole's eyes and temporarily got lost in the joy that was swimming in them. I looked away and reached for the empty shot glasses and beer bottles and stepped to the side when she reached out to help me pile everything on my tray. I felt her shift away and I snuck a glance to see her smile had faded and that she looked a mix of confused and hurt. I lifted the tray off the small table and hesitated wanting to reassure her that she didn't do anything, but not knowing how to do that without having to explain what was going on because honestly what was going on? 

I have had moments where I have questioned my relationship with Champ, but I would easily sweep it under the rug and move on because he genuinely loved me and did his best to make me happy. Now things seem to not want to stay buried. It’s like everything that has bothered me that I have let go is cropping up and creating a field of weeds that need to be ripped out of the ground in order to make the area look beautiful again. I'm not blaming this situation on Nicole's arrival, but things have certainly begun to rub me the wrong way since I've seen her and have been around her enough to see that she's a smart and wonderful person. Things have flipped upside down since I've been thinking about how nice it would be to be around her at all times and doing things as more than friends. The thought of wanting to hold her hand and kiss her has played in a loop in my mind all last night when I should have been sleeping.

Remembering the way her arms were wrapped around me had me up for even longer because it felt right; it felt comfortable. Then her hoodie smelled like her and that was nice to fall asleep to when I was finally able to. Yet, these things are not what I am supposed to be thinking because it isn't something I was raised to see as okay. 

I wasn't taught that it was a bad thing, but I wasn't taught that it was a good thing either. I have spent my whole life being told that I was going to find a nice guy one day who was going to love me and take care of me and that I will marry. I was raised being told that I will one day want kids with my husband and that it was going to be the most fulfilling aspect of my life when it happens to finally have everything I'd want. I was raised to believe that any guy would be lucky to have me. I was raised with men being my only choice for a romantic partner. It has always been men, men, and men. 

This is not to say that I didn't know or have friends who were homosexual, but they couldn't tell their parents or have their parents find out. There were one or two that did come out publicly to everyone and were quick to move away as soon as they graduated because even though they weren't mistreated openly, there were passive aggressive instances that made them uncomfortable. Those who did decide to stay and live in town instead of moving away dealt with the passive aggressiveness, but no one will outright say anything to their face. I guess that's the thing about this small town. Everyone knows everything about everyone, but tend to keep it to themselves unless they were gossiping at someone's house over lunch. 

Now though, I wonder if I really do know myself. Everyone has always assumed I was straight and I have always said I was straight because I have always thought that I was since that’s how I was raised. I mean my gay friends have always had to answer the question of how they know they're gay, but it has never been a question for anyone as to how they know they're straight. If we're told for our whole life that we're straight, then how do we know that we really are or not? Why is it that only gay people have to defend their sexuality while everyone else gets a pass? I walked into the back and took a seat on one of the crates of alcohol and sighed heavily. I rubbed my face then cradled it in my hands as I stared at the floor. 

None of this should matter now. I'm in a relationship and I shouldn't be thinking about any of this. I am who I am and Nicole's existence or not doesn't change that. I can contemplate it all I want, but in the end, it doesn't change anything. I have said I am straight up to this point and I am going to stick with that. This one time that I find a woman astoundingly attractive doesn't change that I'm straight...right? 

I stood up and brushed my hands against the front and back of my shorts to get off any dirt that may have stuck onto me then went back out to continue on with my shift. I let my worries and guilt fade into the background and went around smiling and laughing with everyone that was there. I did my best to try not to serve Wynonna or Champ anymore for the rest of the night so I could avoid seeing Nicole and Champ and not have to have everything I just pushed aside come back to the forefront. Gus stared at me the entire time knowing very well that I was avoiding the two groups, but she kept silent as she stared me down. 

It was two hours later and way too much alcohol that I heard Wynonna shouting at some guy by the pool table. I glanced over to see Wynonna shove the guy into the table as Nicole gripped her pool stick and Dolls wedged himself between both of them putting himself right in the middle as what looked like to be the guy's friends moved closer to circle the three. Nicole and Dolls both shifted their bodies slightly to face the three other guys and kept their gaze moving from Wynonna to them gauging their reactions. It was only a few seconds later that the guy Wynonna had boxed in shoved passed her and took a swing at Dolls. 

Dolls easily stepped back to dodge the fist flying towards his face while the three other guys tried to get in on trying to hit him. Wynonna was quick to sucker punch one of the other guys drawing his attention to her while Nicole rammed the end of her pool stick into the stomach of a second one then swung it like a baseball bat into the back of the third while Dolls knocked the first one onto the floor. The four guys got up, much to my dismay since I will have to clean this mess up later with Gus, and started a full-on brawl. Dolls easily drew in two of the guys while Wynonna and Nicole took on the other two. I bit my lip as I watched Wynonna easily beating up on her guy and I felt my stomach drop when I saw Nicole take a fist to the jaw. 

I looked over to see Champ watching the fight enthusiastically and quickly waltzed over to him. "Champ call Nedley and have him come out here right now please."

"No way! This is fun." 

I balled my hands into fists and tried to contain the rush of anger flooding my body at the thought of him enjoying watching my sister and Nicole fighting. Also, Dolls. "Champ call Nedley now!" I shouted angrily as I pivoted and went to see what I could do to break up the fight. 

"Waverly here," Gus said handing me a bucket of ice and water. "Go throw this on them." 

"Alright." I walked over to the fighting group and tossed the ice water onto them causing them to yell out angrily.

The two closest guys that got the majority of water turned and took a step toward me. I took a step back and watched as Nicole and Wynonna locked their arms around both guys’ necks and started chocking them. The guys lifted them off the ground, so they jumped on their backs. The sound of a gun going off outside forced everyone to stop and fall silent. We all looked to the doors and watched as Nedley strolled in strapping his gun back onto his waist. 

"Y'all finished in here?" He asked. Nicole and Waverly slid off the guys' backs. "Let's go then." He stepped off to the side as the four guys walked pass followed by Dolls, Nicole, and Wynonna. "Have a good one Gus, Waverly."

"I'll see you later to pick up my three," Gus said. 

"Will do." Nedley walked away closing the door behind him. 

I turned to Gus. "Do I want to know what that was all about?" 

Gus grabbed the broom and dust pan. "The guy Wynonna threw into the table said not so nice things about that friend of hers Nicole after he wouldn't stop harassing her. He also tried his hand at Wynonna, but she wasn't pleased about it." 

"What did he say to Nicole?" I did my best to contain my bubbling anger. 

"Nothing I'd like to repeat."

I bent down so Gus could sweep the broken glass into the dust pan. "Are you going to go clear up everything and get them out right now?" 

"Not right now. I think they need some time to cool off." 

I stood up and carried the broken glass to the trash then dragged it out to make things easier. "I'll finish this up and you can go ahead and tend to everyone else." 

"You should try and get that boyfriend of yours to help you."

"I think he'd make a bigger mess at this point." I looked over to Champ to see him teetering over to one side and quickly reach out to grab the table to steady himself. 

"I thought he had to work tomorrow?" 

"So did I." I began to sweep up what I could see in the dim lighting. "He's an adult, so I'm not going to bother with it." 

She gave me the look again then walked away. I looked at Champ again watching as he did end up falling on the floor this time. I shook my head and finished cleaning up the mess from the fight as best as I could before going back to serving and cleaning up behind the bar. 

 

 

 

 

 

I opened the door that led to the jail cells in the back as Nedley processed the bail paperwork. I stood in front of the cell with my arms crossed and stared at all three of them as they laid down on the bench or sat against the wall. Dolls looked over to me then got to his feet and began to stretch after tapping Nicole's shoulder. Nicole popped open one eye catching a glance of me then shook Wynonna's shoulder until she woke up. Wynonna groaned then craned her neck to get a look at me. She sighed then sat up shaking her hair out as she ran her fingers through it. 

"You three look worse than when you left."

"Sheriff Nedley has a weird sense of humor," Wynonna answered. 

I cocked my eyebrow up at that and it was Nicole who answered as she leaned against the bars with her hands hanging out on the other side. "Your Sheriff put us all in this cell together and then conveniently disappeared as we got into another fist fight."

"Then he magically appeared when it was over to take away the dicks for brains and place them in another room so that we don't continue to beat up on each other," Wynonna finished. 

"Sounds like you three had fun then," I said as I assessed all of their visible injuries. 

"It would've been more fun if I was drunk enough to not feel myself getting hit," Wynonna said as the door opened and Nedley came in with the keys. 

"Y'all can thank Gus for getting you out without having to pay the bond. She told me what happened and that it wasn't any fault of yours that the brawl was started." He unlocked the jail cell then stepped to the side. "If you want to press charges we can go ahead and do that now. Especially for you Ms. Haught."

"I'm fine Sheriff Nedley. Thank you for the hospitality," Nicole answered back with mild sarcasm. 

"Well you three stay out of trouble then," he said holding the door open to the main station. 

"Come on now Sheriff, you know this summer wouldn't be fun unless you threw me in jail a couple of times," Wynonna sassed as we all walked to the front where Gus was waiting. 

"Don't make this summer hard for your guests," he reasoned. 

"They make their own decisions." 

Gus stood there with her hands on her waist. "Will you three hurry it up. I would like to get home sometime before Christmas." 

"Later Sheriff Nedley," Wynonna called out with a wave then waltzed out of the station. 

"Always getting into some kind of trouble," Gus muttered. 

"At least I didn't start it this time," Wynonna countered. 

"Oh gee what a miracle!" Gus said sarcastically as she climbed into the truck. 

"I'll just sit back here," Wynonna said as she climbed into the bed of the truck. Dolls followed behind her leaving Nicole and I to sit inside the truck. 

"I can hop in the back as well," Nicole said making her way to climb into the back as she avoided my gaze. I guess she was still feeling that rejection from earlier. 

I grabbed her hand and tried not to acknowledge how well my hand fit in hers and pulled her around the truck. "You can sit up front with me. I don't mind."

"Are you sure?" 

"Yes. Why wouldn't I be?" 

We stood by the door and she stared down at her shoes. "You just didn't seem to want anything to do with me earlier."

"I was just mad at Champ and didn't want to be near anyone," I lied. 

She nodded her head. "Alright then." She reached around me to open the door to the truck. "Let's get back because I need some ice."

I released her hand as I climbed into the truck and settled in next to Gus. She climbed in after me and leaned her head against the window. Gus started the journey back to the Homestead and switched the radio on to cut the silence. 

It was a silent trip back in terms of anyone talking to one another and I'm pretty sure Nicole fell asleep next to me because she had her eyes closed and her breathing was heavier. I looked back to see that Wynonna had her head resting on Dolls' shoulder and Dolls had his head back against the windshield. I settled in more comfortably in the middle of the truck and leaned into Nicole a bit more while leaning my head back against the windshield. I didn't want to fully lay against Nicole's side because I don't want to know how that would feel. 

I know I shouldn't have lied to Nicole about why I was avoiding her all night, but I can't exactly tell her the truth either. I don't want to dump all my questions on her and make her feel obligated to help me figure out what is going on with me. I also don't want her to know that I am sort of crushing on her pretty hard. That'd be too embarrassing for me. I also barely even know her and I don't want to give her the wrong idea or get her hopes up. Plus, this feeling I have for her will probably pass the longer I'm around her and get to know her better. 

I closed my eyes and drifted off into a light sleep. Gus shook my shoulder gently to wake me up and I lifted my head to notice that I had ended up falling asleep against Nicole anyway. I cleared my throat and tried to get the smell of her out of my head as I shook her shoulder to wake her up. She grumbled and wrapped her arms around herself. I bit back a giggle and shook her again. 

"Nicole. Hey we're here." 

She groaned and swatted at me. "Five more minutes." 

This time I did laugh. "Nicole. Come on. We're here." 

She huffed then opened her eyes. "Do you have any chocolate?" 

I looked at her confused. "What?" 

She sat up and rubbed her eyes which caused her to hiss out in pain. "Chocolate." 

The door opened and we both looked to see Dolls there. "There's chocolate in the fridge. Now come on. You have to ice your face and ribs." 

"Great." Nicole climbed out of the truck. 

"I'll see you tomorrow Gus," I said giving her a hug before I started to climb out of the truck. 

"I'll be by in the morning with some food for you four, so let them know," Gus said. 

"I will. Thank you."

"Have a good night." 

I followed behind Nicole and Dolls as Wynonna opened the door and clambered into the house. I shut the door behind me as Nicole fell down onto the couch and Dolls went into the kitchen. Wynonna was spread out on the other couch surfing the channels on the new TV she bought today. I went into the kitchen with Dolls and helped him make up a few ice packs using the spare kitchen rags we had under the sink and spare rubber bands to hold it closed so the ice didn't fall out. He took out four cups and poured ice into them as I took the ice packs into the living room and handed them to Wynonna and Nicole. Wynonna pressed it to her right eye while Nicole took two, one for her left eye and the other for her right rib cage. I went back into the kitchen to help Dolls with the cups of water he poured and noticed he had chocolate bars sticking out of his pockets. 

"Ask Nicole about it," he said as he noticed me looking. 

He walked pass me and into the living room handing Wynonna a cup of water and a chocolate bar before settling down on the floor and resting his back against the couch. He tossed a chocolate at Nicole and it landed on her stomach. She grabbed it and began to open it as I set the cups of water I was holding back down and grabbed the bottle of Ibuprofen. After I sat down and rest my back against the couch Nicole was lying on, Dolls tossed me a chocolate as well and I stared at it for a second then opened it and took a bite. I tossed the bottle of pills to Dolls who shook out a couple for him and Wynonna then tossed it back to me. I shook some out for Nicole and handed them to her. 

"Thanks." She popped the pills into her mouth and washed them down before going back to her chocolate. 

"So what's with the chocolate?"

"My dad used to give me chocolate when I was younger whenever I was crying or not feeling well and it has a chemical in it that helps to lift your mood. So, I eat it because like right now I feel like crap, but the chocolate is making me feel better." 

"That makes perfect sense."

"Yes it does." She shifted and rearranged the ice pack against her ribs. 

I looked at the TV and watched as someone was running through a forest. "What are we watching?" 

"I don't know. Wynonna fell asleep," Dolls answered. 

"That was quick."

"She was sleeping earlier while we were waiting to get bailed out." He stood up and maneuvered the remote out of Wynonna's hand without waking her. "Here. I'm going to head to sleep as well."

"Gus is bringing us some food tomorrow." 

"Great because I don't feel like cooking." 

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight." The stairs creaked under his weight as he made his way upstairs to his room. 

"You should get to bed as well," Nicole said as she stared at the TV. 

I turned to sit on my knees. "I will. Let me see how bad your ribs are."

"They're just bruised."

"That may be true, but I still want to check and see how bad it is." 

She moved her arm out of the way. I set the ice pack aside and lifted her shirt up until I could see the full length of her rib cage. It was beginning to purple from the middle of her ribcage to where it turned into the side of her stomach.  "This is pretty bad. It’s starting to purple. Are you sure it only feels bruised?" 

"Yes. I've broken my ribs before and these are not broken." 

"Alright. Well it’s also coloring the side of your stomach." I lowered her shirt then went over to Wynonna and took the ice pack off the side of her face so it wouldn't burn her since she probably won't wake up in time to remove it. "Alright this should help get it all at once so you can get some relief." I set the ice pack against the stomach part of Nicole's bruising. 

She winced at the ice then settled in comfortably again. "Thank you." 

"You're welcome." I tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear then stared at the fat lip she was sporting as well as the black eye. There was dried blood stuck to her lower lip and a bit was still visible on her chin. "I'll be right back."

I stood up and went to the kitchen to grab a rag and wet the corner of it. I came back and gently cleaned the blood off of her. She did her best not to wince or pull away when I cleaned the cut on her lip. I looked up and got captured in the gentle look she held in her eyes. I ran my thumb underneath her bottom lip not wanting to disturb the cut on it. Her breath hitched which snapped me out of the short trance I was under. I pulled away and got up to put the rag back.   
"So what did that guy tell you to piss Wynonna off?" I asked as I sat back down with my back towards her. 

"Nothing I want to repeat."

"Do you get that often?" 

"The city is more tolerant, but there's always the few people who think they know better or think that they can cure you." 

I looked down at my lap feeling fear begin to creep into my stomach. "How do you deal with that?" 

"Everyone has their own answer to that question, but for me it has to deal with being comfortable with who I am. I wasn't before when I was in high school. I struggled a lot with accepting who I am because I was raised in a part of the city that primarily deemed it as a sin and as abnormal. It was seen as an abomination and an illness. It took me until my senior year to finally come out and say it because it was affecting my health. It was a mixed response from people that year where others came out as well because I was the track star and if I could do it then they could to, then there were some who accepted me and still treated me the same as before, but then there were those who would tape signs on my locker or make sexual innuendos everywhere I went. Some were outright horrid and others were passive, but it all hurt just the same. I held on though because despite the bad, I wasn't hiding anymore. I was happier because I didn't have to lie or avoid anyone. I didn't have to force myself to be someone I wasn’t." She shifted and groaned. She let out a deep breath and settled again. "I found strength in being comfortable with myself that summer before I went to college, and it’s gotten better since. Although, there are still times where I feel all of the negative because you can't really become numb to it all or ignore it all the time." 

I pulled my knees up to my chest. "Do you ever wish you could be like everyone else? That you didn't have to deal with all of the hatred and negativity from other people?" 

I felt her hand on my shoulder and felt her thumb rubbing soothingly against it. "There are days where I do break down and wish I was like everyone else, but then I remind myself that there's nothing wrong with me in the first place. Just because plenty of people don't agree with who I am doesn't mean it’s wrong." Her fingers trailed up the side of my face and pulled my hair back behind my ear.

"Being who you truly are is more important than being who others want you to be because people come and go, but you are who you are all day every day and people who stay are the people who support and push you to be the best you you can be." Her hand rested on my shoulder again and I turned to press my cheek against the back of it. "There's no rush in being who you are because you learn new things about yourself all the time the more you do things that you either get tired of doing all the time or have never done before." 

I turned to her and she pulled her hand back resting it on the couch again. "Do you think it’s ever too late to change?" 

"I believe that people are always changing."

I hummed then folded my arms on the couch then rested my head on top of them. "How are you feeling?" 

"Cold, but that's obviously because of the ice." 

"I think it’s time to take them off." 

"Probably, but they help with not being able to feel the pain." 

"Well if you keep them on any longer you'll burn your skin."

"I know." She sighed and grabbed the ice packs then began to try to sit up.

I got to my knees and pushed her down by the shoulder. "You stay here. I'll take care of this. The less you move the less it hurts." 

"I have to go to bed eventually." 

"I'll bring you down a pillow and blanket. I have to cover up Wynonna as well anyway," I reasoned. 

"Are you sure? I don't want to trouble you." 

"I'm sure. You just relax." 

"Alright then." 

I grabbed up all three ice packs then went to the kitchen to dump them out and hang the rags up to dry them. I then went to Nicole's room to grab a blanket and pillow and Wynonna's room to grab a blanket. I covered Wynonna up first tucking the blanket in around her then went to Nicole. I tucked the blanket in around her then lifted her head up to slide the pillow under her head. 

"There you go." I tucked her hair back behind her ears. 

"Thank you." 

"Is there anything else I can get you before I head upstairs?" 

"If you can turn the TV off that'd be great." 

"Alright then." I shut the TV off and set the control down on the coffee table.

"Goodnight Nicole." 

"Goodnight Waverly. Thank you for everything." 

"You're welcome." 

I walked up to my bedroom then stared at Nicole's hoodie that was sitting on the edge of my bed where I left it that morning. I picked it up then slipped it on with a pair of my flannel pajama pants and reveled in how settling it felt since I was feeling shaky because of that conversation. It was an interesting conversation and one that I will have to think about because I have been running from myself, from being an Earp, thanks to not wanting to be compared to my sister. I have been trying to find a balance between being me and being who people want me to be in order to separate myself from my sister, but I am an Earp. I am Waverly Earp. I don't have to be exactly like my sister, but I also don't have to not be like her to make others happy. 

I need to figure out who the real Waverly Earp is and maybe that will help me figure out how to have a better relationship with Wynonna. I just need to be more me.


	5. The Day After

**_Nicole_ **

I groaned at the shaking that was happening and turned my head towards the pressure that was being applied to my right shoulder. I could vaguely hear the sound of my name being called as I attempted to nuzzle what I could now slightly tell was a hand on my shoulder. There was a soft giggle that made me smile slightly as I chased the hand that was now shaking me once more. I huffed at the retreating hand then popped an eye open to see why the hand was refusing to let me rest my cheek in it. I saw Waverly smiling cutely above me and felt her bend closer to me as she shook my shoulder once more. 

"Time to wake up. Gus brought some pizza over for all of us and you need to eat before you take some medicine." 

"I don't want to get up," I whined as I closed my eye and tried to snuggle into her hand once more. 

She moved her hand away from my shoulder eliciting another whine before I felt her fingertips against the side of my face as she brushed some of my hair behind my ear. "Come on. You can't stay on this couch all day and eating and taking medicine is the only way to ease the pain I'm sure you'll start feeling as soon as you attempt to stand up."

I sighed trying to ignore the already building ache in my ribs as I wake up even more. "You're right." 

"That tends to be a constant thing," she said cockily. 

"And modest too," I joked. 

She let out a small laugh then caressed my cheek bone with her thumb. "Come on then."  
I sighed then opened my eyes slowly blinking them into the light spilling into the room through the cracks in the curtains. She took a step back to give me the room to roll off the couch. I took a deep breath and held it as I rolled off the couch. "Ouch! Son of a bitch!" I hissed out in pain as my hand shot to my ribs. 

I felt her hands hover near me as if waiting to catch me if I ended up falling. "That bad?"   
I nodded my head and clenched my jaw at the jolting pain. "How far is the kitchen again?" I said trying not to laugh at my own pain lest I make it worse. 

She smiled and gingerly took my elbow. "Just a few feet and you'll have pizza and medicine in your mouth." 

"Right." I looked up to see the entrance to the kitchen then shook my head before leaning forward to crunch up as much as possible in an attempt to ease some of the pain. 

"You can do it."

"Oh I know I can. I'm just going to despise every inch of it." I began to shuffle toward the kitchen and held my side softly as I went as if that was helping to alleviate the stinging pain. She walked behind me with her hand hovering over my lower back ready to catch me if I needed it.

"Well someone looks like daisies," I said to Wynonna as I looked at her balancing an ice pack on the side of her head with her cheek pressed against the table and trying to eat her slice of pizza sideways. 

"Fuck off roses," she grumbled. I laughed then winced and regretted it instantly.

"Maybe we should lay off the jokes for right now," Waverly said while guiding me to sit down in one of the chairs. 

"I doubt that will be possible," I said as I hunched over the table. 

"We can try," she responded as she placed a slice of pizza on a plate for me. 

"Thank you." I grabbed the pizza and began to eat as she placed a glass of water in front of me. She plucked the ice pack off the side of Wynonna's head then replaced it with another one before sitting down beside me. I looked around for a second. "Where's Dolls?"

"He already ate when Gus first got in and is up taking a shower," she answered as Wynonna groaned and lifted her head to rest it against the palm of her hand to hold the ice pack and eat properly. 

"I don't understand how he's doing better than us," Wynonna complained. 

"I'm sure he's hurting. He probably just got up earlier than us to take some pain medicine so he could move around better," I answered. 

"That's actually what he did. As soon as Gus came in he grabbed himself a few slices with some medicine," Waverly confirmed for us. 

"How long did you wait to wake us?" Wynonna asked as she reached for another slice. 

"Just until Dolls went up to shower so maybe twenty minutes or so. I made sure to wake you before the pizza got cold," she responded. 

Wynonna nodded her head then slapped the ice pack down on the table before rubbing her sore spot. "Well I'm glad Nedley still loves me." 

"He seems like a joy," I said. 

"You should see him when he really goes out of his way to show me how much he loves me. It usually involves the color orange and an inmate number." 

"And I guess those metal bracelets are a replacement for an engagement ring." 

She winked and pointed her finger at me. "You got it!"

I chuckled and regretted it once again. "Well at least you take your vows seriously." 

"Now what kind of woman do you think I am to think I wouldn't?" She said with faux hurt. 

I rolled my eyes. "You know very well that I know what type of woman you are Wynonna Earp." 

She smirked and grabbed the ice pack placing it against her head again. "Well some women weren't built for commitment." 

"And there's nothing wrong with that," Dolls said as he strolled in and over to the cabinets to grab a glass. 

"And the prodigal son has returned!" Wynonna cheered. 

He gave her a tight smile. "One of us has to at least seem like they're alive." 

"Well we all know that won't be me," Wynonna said. 

I shook my head and adjusted my position and cringed. "So what's the plan for today?" I asked. 

"I'm going to be planted in my room with ice and a bottle of tequila until tomorrow comes," Wynonna answered. 

"I'm going for a run right now," Dolls answered as he set his glass down. 

"Didn't they kick you in the ribs last night?" I questioned. 

"Yes, but I blocked the majority of it with my arm." He turned to show us the ugly bruise forming on his arm. 

"You sure that isn't broken?" Waverly asked. 

"I'm fine. If it doesn't start to get better once the bruise starts to disappear then I'll see a doctor about it." 

Waverly reached out and prodded the bruise. Dolls' face hardened. "Well if you're sure then I guess that's fine, but if you change your mind I have the keys to Gus' truck since she left it here for us." She looked to me. "The same goes for you. If you need to go I'll take you." 

I half smiled. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Nothing ice and some pain killers can't handle." 

The corner of her mouth tilted down in a slight frown. "Alright, but you let me know first thing when you need to go." 

"I will. I promise." I reached over to grab another slice of pizza. "Although I do need to go for a walk at least since I can't run right now." 

"You two workout too much," Wynonna complained. 

"I am on the track team," I reminded. 

"My father was in the military, so it's routine for me," Dolls added. 

Wynonna rolled her eyes. "Alright Forest and G.I. Joe. I get it." 

Dolls smirked then clasped a hand on Wynonna's shoulder and shook her slightly to irritate her. "I'll see all of you later." 

"I hope you fall in a ditch somewhere," Wynonna groaned as she pressed her fingertips to her forehead in a useless attempt to ease her headache. 

"You warm my very core," he called back before the door shut loudly behind him. 

Wynonna huffed and glared at the sound. "I'm going to go lay down now."

"Don't forget to put some medicine by your bed," Waverly said. 

"Thanks." Wynonna grabbed the small bottle of pain killers then kissed the top of Waverly's head before exiting to her room. 

I ate my pizza silently as Waverly picked her nails until she sighed and leaned her face into the palm of her hand. "So, going for a walk huh?" 

I chewed through my bite as quickly as possible then swallowed and cleared my throat. "Yes. I need to do something since I can't go out for a jog." 

"And relaxing and taking care of your ribs isn't doing something?" 

I leaned back in my seat trying to still stay a bit hunched over. "It isn't just about doing something. It’s a therapeutic thing for me. It’s a way for me to clear my head and let go of everything around me whether good or bad." 

She buried her fingers in her hair as she leaned into her hand more. "How did you get into running?"

I gave her a small smile then stood up from the chair. "I'll tell you but only if you join me on my walk." 

She sat up in her seat and stared at my bent forward form. "Are you sure I won't be bothering you if I do?" 

"I wouldn't ask you to join me if I thought you would bother me. Besides you want my story right?" 

"I do. If you really don't mind then I'd love to join you."

"Alright. I'll see you back here in a few minutes then." 

I turned and began to walk to the staircase to head up to my room when I felt her presence behind me and knew she was following me to make sure I made it up alright. I turned around and gave her a smile then gripped the railing in order to help keep me balanced as I stayed bent forward. Once on the landing I took the risk of standing up straight in order to stretch my back because it was beginning to ache from staying in one position for so long. I groaned and winced then brought my hand up to my side. It's definitely going to take a week or two for this to heal enough for it to be bearable. 

"You alright?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it." 

"Alright, but if you need help with getting dressed let me know." 

I tried to not think about Waverly helping me take off my clothes, but like some things, it fails. She's only trying to help me. It’s like what nurses do for patients in the hospital. "I'll be fine, but thank you for the offer." 

"Of course. I'll see you in a bit." 

I nodded then opened the door to my room feeling her watching me as she was probably waiting for me to go into my room first to make sure I was alright. I entered the room and did the usual routine of clenching my jaw and biting back my groans of pain as I slipped out of my clothes and pulled on my running shorts and sports bra taking care to add a muscle shirt since I was going to be walking with Waverly and didn't want her to feel uncomfortable. I gripped my side and bent forward placing my free hand on my knee to steady myself as I took time to allow the hammering pain of my ribs to subside to a bearable level before slipping my shoes on to head out. Once that was done I ran my fingers through my hair wanting to put it up in a ponytail at least, but not wanting to deal with the agony it may force from my ribs. I sighed then left my room and went downstairs. 

I stood by the door and waited for Waverly to come down and join me. I turned at the sound of the wooden stairs creaking from added weight. Waverly bounced on the balls of her feet as she entered the little standing area in front of the door. She was wearing a small pair of black shorts that look like she may have used them for running at some point and a slightly baggy red T-shirt that also showed the same amount of wear and tear coupled with some white sneakers. This was actually the most relaxed I had seen her in the clothes she wore. She exuded this source of comfort and confidence all at once that was inviting. It was like in this moment she was truly herself; stripped of layers of what others may think of her. 

"Ready to go?" She asked nervously. 

I looked into her eyes to convey that everything was fine. "Yes. Are you sure you want to come with me though? I honestly don't want to make you go for a walk if you don't want to." 

She smirked and invaded my space only enough to leave a foot between us. "I wouldn't have gotten dressed if I didn't intend on joining you." 

I slipped an inch closer to her. "Alright then. Why don't you lead us out if you're so sure you want to go on a walk?" 

She stepped closer as well. "Don't mind if I do." She side stepped then walked right out the front door. 

I took a deep breath to calm my raging nerves and sudden spike of desire. I love a woman not afraid of a challenge. I followed behind her making sure to shut the door behind me. I checked my phone to make sure the ringer was on in case Wynonna woke up before either us or Dolls come back and she wanted to know how far away we were. I slipped my phone into my phone sleeve on my arm then caught up to Waverly halfway out of the front yard. 

"Planning on listening to music while we walk?" She asked casting a glance at my phone. 

"No. Just making sure the ringer was on just in case." 

"Expecting an important phone call?" 

"Considering only Dolls or Wynonna will be calling me, then no. I'm not expecting any important phone calls."

"What about your parents?" 

"They went on vacation, so unless it’s an emergency they probably won't call until classes start up again." 

"Do they do that a lot?" 

"Not at all. They usually call once a day and text me throughout the week. This is the first time they take time for themselves, so I told them not to worry about me and if I ran into any issues either I or Dolls and Wynonna would give them a call to let them know." 

"That's nice of you."

I shrugged as if it was no big deal because it actually isn't. "They've spent their whole lives taking care of me and standing up for me, so it’s sort of shocking that they waited this long to finally take time for themselves. I thought that when I had started at college they would be going out together traveling or doing other couple things and enjoying their time together now that I had grown up, but instead they still put me first."

"All parents are different, but at the foundation of the really good and loving parents, you will always be their little girl who needs them at every turn," she said with a tinge of sadness in her tone. 

"You're right, but it’s not always your parents that can fill that position. Sometimes it can be friends or other family members that can make you feel that exact same thing." I looked at the side of her face. "I mean your aunt and uncle must have or still make you feel like that as well." 

A small smile tugged at the corner of her lip. "My uncle really did and Gus still does. I guess if you look at it from the outside, they are my parents since they raised me through the most difficult part of my life." 

"If you see them as your parents whether they raised you or because they were there for you more than anyone else, that is your business and no one else’s to comment on or judge." 

She turned to look at me and smiled shyly. "Thank you."

I looked away and up the road. "It’s only logical." 

She bumped my shoulder. "I still needed to hear it though." 

I bumped her back. "Then I'm glad I was the one to say it." 

A comfortable silence settled between us as we slowly strolled down the dirt property road leading back to the main one. My ribs had become a dull ache since I wasn't straining it right now, but I'm sure it won't last very long. Pain killers tend to not last to their full recommended dosage hours for me and I end up having to take another set earlier than suggested or just power through it until it was time to take the next dose. 

"So how did you get into running?" She asked drawing me out of my head. 

I nodded my head remembering that I promised to tell her my story. "Just a warning, this story starts out happy then gets sad before finally ending sappy."

"I take it those or Wynonna's description of this story?" 

"And Dolls." 

"Well I find those types of stories the most interesting." 

"If you say so." 

"I do," she said confidently. 

I hummed in response then stayed silent to compose myself for a brief minute. "When I was younger, my grandfather used to own a small piece of land with a few farm animals here and there. I used to go visit every summer with my family and whenever I didn't want to do a particular chore on the farm, my grandfather would say 'I will race you for it' and he would point out the finish line then count us down. As I got older it became more about wanting to race each other to see who was the best and something just for us until he pushed me to do some competitions in my first year of middle school. Then it became about him cheering me on and racing me at the end of every meet to see if he would get me ice cream or not which he did anyway whether I won or lost." 

I felt her hand brush against mine since she moved closer to me. I focused on that faint touch to help keep me grounded because telling this story always brought a whirlwind of emotions back to the forefront. "He passed away at the beginning of my third year in middle school and I didn't compete at all that year, but whenever I felt like I was forgetting him, I would go outside and run as fast and as far as I could because it was the only time I truly felt him there with me. And that went on for months. It was just me running with tears in my eyes and my lungs feeling as if they would burst from my body and spill out onto the pavement to end my suffering. I couldn't compete, I couldn't race against anyone because it reminded me that my grandfather wasn't there anymore and I felt that if I did compete or that I did race against some random person on the street, I would be betraying him because it was our thing. I didn't want that and that was a period of time that I did hate my parents for trying to push me to compete again because they just didn't understand and I didn't want to talk about it." 

Her hand slid in mine as I stopped and wiped my eyes. I took a deep breath and let it out shakily. "My parents had been cleaning out his house and selling the animals because they didn't have the money to pay someone to maintain them or the land, so they had to let a lot of things go. During that cleaning, they found a letter that he had written me just before he died and it was the thing that pulled me through and got me back into competing again." I shook our hands to get some physical movement since we're just standing and looked up at the sky. "In the letter, he said he loved me and that the most joyful memories of his long life was watching me run because he always felt as if he was running right behind me pushing me to the finish line. He said that that wouldn't change. He would always be behind me, but that he would be the wings on my back helping me soar to the finish line and always protecting me and wrapping me in his love in every part of my life. And that helped me to take the first step to try to run again. It wasn't easy at first because I broke down and cried after every meet, but now it’s easier. I still get teary eyed, but I know he's with me so I don't feel so alone at the end anymore." I smiled and looked down at our joined hands. "I always point up at the heavens after each race to let him know that I feel him and that I love him."

I felt her arms wrap around my waist and her hands begin to rub my back. I fell into her embrace and tucked my face into the crook of her neck and let my tears fall. They were a mixture of heartbreak and joy because I miss my grandfather, but I know he's here with me. He's always here with me. 

I pulled away and cleaned my eyes then laughed out of discomfort. "Sorry."

She reached up and wiped some stray tears I had missed. "Don't be," she said with fierce sincerity. 

I nodded my head and stepped back again or else I'd start crying once more because of how gentle and caring she was being. "Do you want to keep going?" 

She reached out and grabbed my hand lacing our fingers together. "That's fine by me." 

"OK." I squeezed her hand then continued walking and focused on the crunching of the dirt beneath my feet. 

"My uncle was the one who got me interested in reading," she said breaking the silence. I inched closer to her to give her some support. "I was the youngest of the three of us and our mother had left us not long after I was born, so I knew from a very young age that in some way Wynonna and Willa blamed me for her leaving even though it wasn't really my fault. It also didn't help that they were closer to each other than they were with me, so I was left out a lot because I was so much younger than them." She squeezed my hand and I squeezed back to let her know I was right here. "So I spent most of my time with my uncle reading, learning nursery rhymes, or solving riddles. I especially enjoyed solving riddles. That was my favorite thing to do with him and I remember him spending days writing up a riddle for me to solve and sometimes there would be a prize at the end of it like candy or a new toy while other times it was just to spend more time with me." 

"After Wynonna really started to go off the rails and I was fully able to understand the concept of death and what happed in the past, I began to go through the motions of my day. Wake up, eat, get dressed, go to school, come home, do homework, do my chores, eat, then sleep to start all over again in the morning. Every day was the same. My uncle noticed it early on and tried to get me to do riddles or read specific stories in order to drag me out of the spot I was stuck in. It wasn't working in the beginning because it just became one more thing I did because it was a part of my day, so he started to throw in history. He started with the Egyptians and the only way I could get the next piece of the riddle is if I researched the answer." 

"At first it was another chore to do, more homework needing to be done, but the more I had to research and read through articles and historic findings to get the answer, the more I began to get interested in what I was reading and what else I would find out with the next line of the riddle. The history fascinated me and the riddles began to get more difficult and they began to involve other cultures, languages, and people so that it wasn't the same thing every time. It was a long time before I realized I wasn't stuck anymore. I was moving again and it was because he took the time to draw me out by engaging my mind and keeping it a thing just for us. It was what we did together and no one else." 

She stopped and stared at the road ahead. "After he saw that I was moving again, he would make easy riddles just to let me know how much he loved and cared about me. Even up until the day he died he made me riddles, and even now I still have one in an envelope that he left me. I haven't opened it because I know that the moment I do and the second I get my answer that it will be over. That I will finally lose the last piece of him I still hold." She met my gaze with watery eyes. "I know it’s not true because I'll always have the memories of him in my heart and mind, but I don't want to give up that one piece just yet because it makes me feel like he's still right here more than ever and I'm not ready to lose that. I'm not ready to solve the last riddle and fully say goodbye." 

A tear escaped her right eye and I stepped closer to her to wipe it away. She closed her eyes letting more tears cascade down her cheeks and I wrapped my arms around her pulling her into me. She held onto me and cried silently against my shoulder. I kissed the side of her head and rubbed her back to sooth her. Eventually she pulled away and I helped to clean the tears from her face. She crowded my space and tilted her face up then stared at my lips with a foggy wisp of desire in her eyes. 

"Are you two alright?" Dolls voice cut in breaking whatever spell she was in. She jumped back and I looked to the side to see Dolls coming up.

"We're fine. We were just telling each other sad stories about our lives," I answered. 

His sharp eyes moved from me to her. "Well sorry for interrupting," he said not looking sorry at all as an amused glint settled in his gaze as he stared at the both of us. 

"Its fine. We should probably head back anyway. My ribs are starting to give me trouble," I half lied in order to change the subject. I wanted to keep walking, but I didn't want Waverly to do something she would regret if we did. 

"Well I'm going to finish my jog up there so you two enjoy the walk." He pushed his ear buds back into place then took off making me wish I could follow right behind him to escape this awkward moment. 

I looked back to Waverly to see she had drawn into herself. "You ready to head back?" 

She looked up with a tinge of red on her cheeks and nodded her head. "That would be great." 

We turned and began to make our way back up the road in a tense silence. I don't want to jump to the assumption that Waverly staring at my lips meant she wanted to kiss me. That's impossible. It was probably just the heat of the moment since we shared a very important and meaningful part of ourselves with each other. I don't think it’s that odd to seek some comfort from the person you were having a moment with, but then again it is odd to want to seek it in the form of a kiss if that's where she was heading, especially since she is currently in a relationship. I don't think I would have known what to do if Dolls didn't come by when he did and she did end up doing what I think she was going to do. 

On one hand, I would have enjoyed it, but the aftermath would have been a tornado of chaos and a festering of guilt and regret between us. If she did go through with kissing me, it would have torn us apart and as much as I would love for my crush on her to become more, it is more worthwhile in getting to hear her talk about the people and events in her life that have made her who she is right now. If this thing between us decided to head towards solely a close friendship I would feel like one of the lucky ones to know who she truly is and that she trusts me enough to not hide parts of herself and to fully be who she is around me. I'm perfectly content on knowing the real Waverly because that's what's most important to me than my stupid crush turning into a real relationship. 

I stepped closer to her and took her hand giving it a gentle squeeze to let her know that everything is fine between us and that there's no need to feel embarrassed or uncomfortable around me. She looked at me and I smiled at her. She half smiled back and squeezed my hand not letting it go as we continued our walk back up to the house. I know it’s not easy to forget an incident like this and that it will be a while before she's fully comfortable around me again because I've almost done the same thing a few times in my life as well. I hope she knows that I'm not going to hold this against her or have her think that I don't want her around me anymore. I can only do so much to make sure she knows that it’s alright and we can still move forward and get to know each other better. That I'm not going to turn my back on her or only want to spend time with her because she's Wynonna's little sister. I want to know her because of her not because of Wynonna. 

She released my hand as soon as the sign for the Homestead came into view and we walked up to the house in a thicker barrier of silence. Moving past this is really going to take some effort, but I'm willing to go at whatever pace she wants to.   
I walked a tad faster than her to get to the door first and opened it to let her in first. 

"Thank you," she finally spoke. 

"You're welcome." 

I followed her into the house and she quickly ran upstairs. I sighed heavily and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water before heading up to take a very agonizing shower thanks to my limited range of motion. Dolls was perched against the sink with a glass of water half drunk in his hands and another sitting on the counter next to him. He grabbed it and held it out to me. I took the glass then leaned my back against the counter next to him. We drank in silence as we listened to the heavy footfalls of Waverly on the second floor. I glanced up as I heard a door closed shut to the bathroom and resigned myself to waiting until she was done to take my shower. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked getting straight to the point. 

"I don't even know to be honest. I know but yet I don't." 

He hummed. "It certainly looked like it was heading toward a kiss."

I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Did it really?" 

"Yes." 

I set my glass down and hugged my injured side. "I was hoping you'd lie to me." 

"No you didn't." 

I shook my head. "You're right."

"So what do you think?" 

I tapped my fingers against my side. "I don't think she really meant to do it. I honestly believe it was because of the moment. What do you think?" 

He set his glass down and crossed his arms over his chest. "From what I saw, I would say the same thing. I don't think she's in a place right now to even think about kissing you without feeling any regret or confusion. I think right now you're an enigma to her." 

I ran my fingers through my hair. "So what should I do?" 

"You already know what you want to do. I knew the second you came in that you had come to a resolution, so you tell me what you're going to do."

"You know sometimes you knowing me very well can get annoying." 

"I know, so don't even start trying to stall." 

I huffed. "I'm more interested in knowing who she is than anything else and I want her to know that her almost kissing me isn't going to change that. I still want to be her friend and I don't want her to make things weird between us, but I know they're going to be. I mean she did just sprint up the stairs right now," I pointed out. "I want her to feel like everything is fine between us." 

"Give her time and don't stop trying to get to know her. She'll move past it in her own time."

"That's exactly what I thought." 

He nodded his head. "You'll be fine." 

I turned to rinse out my glass. "I hope so." He squeezed my shoulder then took over the sink to rinse his own cup out. 

I really do hope everything turns out for the better.


	6. Panic

**_Waverly_ **

I ran up the stairs and couldn't even go straight to my room. I began to anxiously pace in the hallway. What the actual fuck did I almost do?! I let my hair down so I could worry my fingers through it. I almost kissed her. 

"Shit! I almost kissed her," I whispered to myself. 

Oh no no no no. This can't be happening. This seriously cannot be happening to me right now. I paced faster and gnawed on my lower lip. How could I almost kiss her? How does that even happen?! I rubbed my forehead and gripped my hip. How does almost kissing her even happen? We were simply sharing stories about ourselves with each other and then all of a sudden, I'm about to kiss her! What the hell has gotten into me? 

I pivoted and finally went to my room. I grabbed my phone off my nightstand and scrolled through my contacts. I found the person I was looking for and shot off a quick text. I stood up with my phone in hand and began to pace again. My phone dinged with a new message and I sent a response back before tossing my phone on my bed and heading to the bathroom to take a quick shower. 

I looked both ways down the hall and waited to hear if someone was coming up the stairs. Once I was satisfied that the coast was clear, I practically sprinted to the bathroom to take my shower trying to hurry so that I wouldn't run into Nicole. I know its cowardly to hide and sneak around her, but I have no idea how else to go about things right now. If I could I would run for the hills and never look back, but I can't do that. I don't want to do that. Even though I feel like an idiot for almost kissing her, I only want to be closer to her rather than as far away as possible and that's frightening to me. How can I want to run away but also want to become closer to someone? It doesn't make sense. None of this makes sense. 

I rushed through my shower then climbed out to run back to my room to quickly dress and head out. I poked my head out the door to check the hallway again then ran to my room. I hurriedly dried myself off, threw on my clothes, then tied my hair in a braid before glancing down the hallway and making a run for the stair case. I climbed down as quietly as I could not wanting to draw attention to myself and went to the kitchen to grab the keys off the counter. 

"She's already in her room sleeping," Dolls called form the living room. 

I jumped at the sudden sound of his voice and braced myself on the counter to help calm my racing heart. I shoved off the counter once I was calm then went to the living room. "I don't know what you're talking about." 

He sat up and met my eye with a knowing gaze. "Heading somewhere?" 

"I'm going to meet up with a friend of mine. Do any of you need the car in the next hour or so?" 

"No. If anything, I'll take Wynonna's bike." 

I nodded my head and squeezed the car keys in my hand. "Well if you need anything that you can't carry on the bike then give me a call and I'll come back." 

"I think we'll be fine for now. Wynonna is going to sleep the day away until I wake her up to eat something and Nicole has probably passed out as well." 

My heart fluttered at Nicole's name. "Right well like I said, give me a call." 

"I will,” he said. I tapped the keys against the palm of my other hand and began to make my way to the door. "Don't forget that you'll eventually get exhausted from all of your running," he added.  

I hesitated at the door with my hand on the door knob. I looked down at my feet. I took a deep breath letting his words sink in then pulled the door open and walked out. 

 

 

 

 

 

I searched the small diner and broke into a huge smile when I saw Fish waving at me from a booth in the back corner. I waved back and made my way over to him. He stood up and pulled me into a big, tight hug. 

"It’s good to see you. It’s been a few days." 

"I know. I'm sorry. I got caught up with Wynonna coming back and she brought some friends with her, so I've been hanging around them." 

"How is she doing?" 

"Same old Wynonna, but she actually seems happier now. More grounded." 

"A Wynonna with her feet planted? Now I don't believe that."

"Well I think you can thank her friends for that. They seem to have helped her get a head on her shoulders." 

"What makes you think that?" 

"She hasn't pushed them away." 

He quirked his eyebrow. "Well that's new." 

"It is. It’s like they're family, so I can tell that they have changed her in some way." 

"That's good, isn't it?" 

"It really is."

The waitress came over. "What can I get you two?" She asked sweetly. 

"I'll have a lemonade," Fish answered. 

"And I'll have a water," I answered. 

"OK. You let me know when you're ready to order some food and I'll be right back with your drinks." 

"Thank you," we both answered at the same time. 

He sat forward with his arms on the table. "So enough with the small talk. Why did you really message me?" 

"I can't want to hang out with a friend?" 

"You can, but your text seemed a little urgent for just wanting to 'hang out,'" he said making air quotes. 

The waitress promptly came back with our drinks and set them down in front of us. "When you're ready for food just wave me down," she said cheerily then went to tend to other customers. 

"So?" Fish asked not giving me the chance to change the subject. 

I sighed and twirled my cup. "I almost kissed one of Wynonna's friends," I confessed. 

"Wow. Go you. Did he want to kiss you back? And what was his name again? Xavier, right?" He asked excitedly. 

I pulled my hands into my lap and shifted uncomfortably. "It wasn't that friend," I confessed. 

"What do you mean?" He asked confused. I stared at my hands and stayed quiet. "The only other friend she brought was that girl Nicole, right? Wait." He gasped drawing my attention then leaned forward. "You almost kissed Nicole?" I nodded my head in confirmation. He whistled then sat back. "Wow. Now that's something." He tapped his fingers against the table then leaned in. "So, does that mean you're interested in women?" I shrugged. "You've got to give me more than that Waverly. I can't help you if I don't know what's going on in your head. I mean you do want to talk about it, right?" I nodded my head. "Then talk to me." 

I dropped my shoulders and sunk into the booth more. "I don't know what's going on. One day I feel like I know who I am and the next she walks in and my whole world has flipped over on itself. I don't know what's going on with me and I don't know why she's the reason for all of it." 

"What exactly has been going on?" I looked at him exasperated by the question because I feel like I just answered that question. He hovered his hands above the table. "I mean what specifically have you been feeling or experiencing?"

I fumbled with my fingers as I tried to arrange my thoughts. I sat forward and rubbed my hands against my face. "I feel like there is some type of pull from her that's sucking me into her gravity and no matter where I am, it’s a constant tugging that won't end. I mean from the moment I saw her I wanted to be near her as much as I possibly could." I paused and looked around. "I've thought about what it would be like to kiss her or have her arms wrapped around me. I've thought about what it'd be like to touch her." I sunk my fingers into my hair. "I don't know what's wrong or going on with me." 

He reached out and grasped my hands. "First off, there's nothing wrong with you. You're not broken and there's nothing about you that needs fixin'. Don't let no one, not even yourself, say there's something wrong with you. You're still the same Waverly I knew yesterday and the day before and you're going to be the same Waverly I know tomorrow and the day after. What's going on with you right now doesn't change who you are at your core. There is nothing wrong with you and you should never feel like there is especially when it comes to loving someone," he said with conviction. 

I squeezed his hands and dry swallowed trying to contain my emotions. "Thank you." 

He smiled comfortingly. "Of course." He kept his hold on my hands. "Now secondly, have you ever experienced any of this with any other woman and is it the same as when you are thinking of men or somewhat similar?" 

I let out a slow breath and shook my head. "No. I haven't had this sort of feeling towards another woman. I don't know if it’s because I wasn't interested or if I was more worried about making sure I was popular and had friends. I only know that I haven't looked at the girls here like that or I honestly don't remember if I ever did have some fleeting thought about it before burying it and moving on because I didn't want to be an outcast when I suffered a lot in the beginning for being an Earp." 

"I can see where you might repress it to the point you don't remember anything, but that doesn't make what you’re feeling now any less valid. The same goes for not having felt any of this for any of the women here." 

"I suppose so." I let go of his hands then began to play with the end of my braid. "What I'm feeling for her is similar to what I feel towards a guy, but unlike with men, I feel a draw towards her." I began to gesture with my hands. "Like I have this urge to be near her or in her line of sight and I have an itching feeling to want to get to know her more than my drive to be physically intimate with her even though my body is reacting without my brain right now in that department," I said laughing at my own inabilities to control myself. "I can always feel when her eyes are on me, I enjoyed having her arms wrapped around me when she was riding behind me on a motorcycle they rented out for the day, and I never slept better then when she let me borrow her sweater and I ended up sleeping in it and enjoying her smell that clung to it." I stared at my hands. "It seems insane because she hasn't even been here a week and I don't know anything about her other than what Wynonna told me and what she shared with me today about her grandfather."

"Time is something that is constantly flowing whether you do everything or you do nothing. So whether it be love, infatuation, desire, or lust, time is the perception of the person within the experience because you can feel all of that for someone over a long period of time or in the first few minutes of having seen or been with them. So no, it’s not crazy that you feel the way you do for someone you don't know." 

I folded my arms on the table and rest my head on them. "When did you get so smart?" 

He shrugged. "I get bored at college at times and browse through the poetry and philosophy sections. Plus, it helps that Levi was the guy that I fell for at first sight and everyone made fun of me for it, but look where we're at now? We both got into the same college and got an apartment together. I'm even thinking about marriage in the future once we've graduated." 

"Wow seriously?" 

"Yes."

I vibrated in my seat from excitement. "I'm so happy for you!"

"Leave some happiness for when it does happen. For now, we're happy so long as we're together." 

I reached out and squeezed his hands happily. "I really am glad you two found each other. Who would have thought you answering that ad to carry photography equipment would lead you to meeting your future husband." 

He smiled brightly. "I don't regret that decision even though my muscles were sore after that ordeal. The ad said nothing about climbing six flights of stairs carrying all of the equipment while he got to stand there and set it all up once I dropped it off." 

"Well I'm glad that everything is working out between you two."

"So am I." He took a drink from his lemonade. "Now back to you my dear." He set his glass to the side. "Don't let time dictate how you feel towards her or the fact that she's the first woman you have ever had feelings for. I personally think you should take things slow with her and get to know who she really is for yourself, not what Wynonna or Xavier tells you about her. Hear it from her and if through all of that you still feel the same or your feelings have gotten stronger you're going to have to decide whether to take the plunge or not, but you also have to figure out what you're going to do about Champ. You can't string him along through all of this because you're not sure or want to have a safety net to catch you. You need to figure out what you want in that relationship because at the end of the day, it’s not fair to either of them if you're wishy washy about it all." 

I rested my cheek against the palm of my hand. "I don't know if I want to break it off with Champ because of this and things are a little bit strained now between Nicole and I because I sort of ran and avoided her after the incident." 

He folded his arms on the table. "Well I don't blame you for running. I would too if I was in your shoes, but if she didn't make a big deal out of it then you shouldn't either. And I'm not saying to end things with Champ because of all of this. You need to end things because you feel like it’s time to do it. I'm going to be completely honest with you and say you can do better than him. I'm not saying that he's a bad guy or anything like that, but you need someone who isn't going to hold you back and Champ is the kind of guy who’s going to keep you from living and growing. I mean his big wish is to one day leave here and own his own bar and have you working as a waitress there. You need someone who's future of you two together doesn't involve you being a waitress because you can do more than that. You can be someone and you don't need someone who's going to eclipse you for their own benefit." He sat back and opened his hands in an I don't know gesture. "Now if you want to be a waitress at a bar for the rest of your life than that's your decision to make and that's the future you want for yourself. There's nothing wrong with that as long as you're happy with it." 

I ran my hands down my face and groaned lowly. "I don't want to be a waitress, but Champ is so sweet that I don't think I can break his heart." 

"Don't let breaking someone else's heart stop you from reaching your full potential and happiness. Its going to be hard and you're going to feel like the biggest bitch in existence for a while because he's probably going to be walking around looking like a kicked puppy until his heart mends, but at the end of the day if its what's best then you have to bite that bullet." He reached for his glass. "You have to eventually stop living for others and live for yourself." 

I drew circles on the table with the condensation from my water glass. "You're right," I said dejectedly. 

He reached over and drew a line through my circle. "I know it’s not easy for you. I've done my share of horrible things to people I had dated because I was trying to have my cake and eat it to. I can't tell you how miserable I made a few of my ex-boyfriends' lives because I wanted to stay in the closet, but still be with them. It wasn't a life they signed up for and it wasn't something I could do to them any longer. Some broke up with me because of it, but I broke up with the ones that promised that the issue would never come between us and break us apart. I knew that it wouldn't because they never complained or argued with me about it, but I got to the point I couldn't do it to them any longer and ended things. There are times I wonder if any of them would have been my 'one' if I had stuck with them, but I knew it wasn't fair to them and I didn't want to be that guy that held them back or that was forever going to be afraid to be who I am. I needed to break up with them if I was ever going to take the step to come out to everyone in my life because they were all too happy to keep helping me lie and deceive everyone and I knew that they wouldn't ever be able to have a real relationship with me if it always had to happen in the dark." He drew a circle next to mine and drew a line through it. "Sometimes the decisions we make are selfish, but if we're never selfish then we leave ourselves open to be walked on by people not deserving of our efforts and what we have to give. You can't sign yourself up for a life of misery because you don't want to be selfish in the moments in your life where it will make all the difference." He drew his finger back and folded his hands on the table. 

I looked up at him and narrowed my eyes. "Levi and college have made you too smart." 

He chuckled and waved my comment off. "Please, we all still have a lot to learn. I'm just telling you what I wished someone had the guts to tell me or even took the time to have a conversation with me."

"Well I'm glad you don't mind talking about these things with me." 

"Oh Waverly. You've helped me the most out of everyone up until I graduated and went off to college and still had no problem with letting me cry to you over the phone late at night. There were plenty of times where I wondered who was the older one between us because you were always so responsible and projected this confident aura of maturity. I'm only glad I could actually get a chance to act my age around you and be the big brother." 

I smiled. "You'll always be a big brother even if I have to play older sister once in a while to help you get through tough times." 

"You always know what to say to warm my heart," he said while wiping away a fake tear. 

I shook my head and finally finished off my water. "Thank you for this. It really means the world." 

"Anytime Waverly."

I stuck my head out of the booth and waved our waitress down. "Now I think it’s time we eat and move to a happier topic." 

"Agreed," he eagerly replied. 

 

 

 

 

 

I crept back into the house taking care not to make too much noise in case they were sleeping. I shut the door locking it then peeked into the living room since the TV was on. I saw Nicole passed out on the couch again with an ice pack against her side and a glass of water on the floor with her hand hanging down near it. One wrong move and she'll tip the cup over spilling the water all over the floor. I went over and snatched the cup off the floor before she could make a mess in her sleep then grabbed the ice pack off her ribs and checked to make sure it hadn't burned her skin. Her skin was a bit red, but nothing too bad. I switched everything to one hand then used my other to tuck some stray strand of her hair behind her ear since she tried to do it while deeply asleep. Maybe I can get her to let me braid her hair before she goes to sleep so she's more comfortable. 

I walked over to the kitchen to place the glass in the sink and then let the ice fall out of the rag before hanging it to dry to be used tomorrow. I was surprised that the ice was fresh and hadn't melted that much or else Nicole would be sleeping in an icy puddle right now. 

"She fell asleep not that long ago." 

I jumped and spun around pressing my hand to my chest. "Jesus Dolls!" I whispered yelled as to not wake Nicole. "Make a noise or something," I chastised. 

"I'll start knocking on the walls everywhere I go," he said with a straight face. 

I rolled my eyes. "Well better than this ninja thing you've got going on." 

A glint of amusement shined in his eyes. "Everyone is asleep. I was just waiting for you to come back before I woke up the cavalry to come get you." 

I leaned against the sink. "Last thing I need is a grumpy Wynonna tornado terrorizing the town in search of me." 

"Yes, well I don't know if you know, but there's this invention called a phone that you can send text messages or make phone calls with so that people don't worry. I mean I know you're a little young, but I'm sure it came out during your generation as well." 

"Smartass." I shoved off the sink and went to the fridge to grab the orange juice. 

"Sometimes it's warranted."

I pour myself a cup of orange juice then leaned against the fridge. "What did y'all end up eating while I was gone?" 

"We got some hamburgers and Sheriff Nedley was nice enough to give me a helping hand by driving it up here in his squad car while I led the way." 

"That was nice of him." 

He crossed his arms. "It was more because he felt guilty about last night as supposed to wanting to be a good samaritan. He ended up asking if Nicole wanted to press charges again, but she said she's fine and to let it go. The only shining moment about his visit is when he apologized for putting us all in the same cell instead of separating us." 

"I bet Wynonna had a field day with that." 

"I had to clamp my hand over her mouth so she wouldn't ruin it." 

"Yeah she really would've gone above and beyond with her quips." 

"Oh she did after he left, but she wore herself out eventually going back to sleep." 

I glanced at the living room. "Nicole is nicer than I would've been if that happened to me." 

"She's had a longer battle with it than the rest of us. She went from dealing with it by herself to having Wynonna and I by her side. I sometimes think she forgets that we're here for her and she doesn't always have to fight alone." 

"I don't think that's it," I blurted out. 

He looked to me curiously. "What do you think it is?" 

I tapped my finger against the fridge then took a seat at the table. Well I already opened my big mouth. "I think she knows you're both there beside her, but she feels the need to protect you from the things she's had to deal with since she went public with her sexuality because she doesn't want either of you getting hurt because of her." 

He took the seat across from me. "What makes you think that?" 

"I think it’s because it fits her character more. I mean she takes care of you both as much as she can and from what Wynonna told me she's more than willing to jump into a fight for either of you because you're important to her, but on the same side because you're important to her she doesn't want either of you getting hurt because of her."  

He turned in his seat to stare into the living room. "Interesting." 

I began to stand up. "Sorry. I don't mean to come off as if I know her better than you or anything. I mean I've only known her for like two seconds while you've known her for longer."

He turned and put his hand out to calm me. "Its fine. I've just never thought about it in that way. It’s always good to get a new perspective on things." 

"Right. In any case it’s your friendship not mine." 

"You know you could have a friendship with her too if you didn't try to run and avoid her."

I stopped at the exit of the kitchen. "What do you mean?" 

"Everyone makes mistakes or does something they regret, but I don't know anyone as forgiving as Nicole or more willing to work past it if it’s worth it." 

"Did she tell you everything?" 

"She didn't have to. I interrupted it remember?" 

I turned around and leaned my shoulder against the door jam. "What is it that you want me to say?" 

"I'm not a trained ventriloquist so I don't have anything I want you to say."

"I didn't know sarcasm was a part of your abilities." 

"It’s an acquired trait that appears every so often." 

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. "I don't know what you're expecting of me." 

"I don't have any expectations for you; only hopes." 

"Meaning?" 

"Meaning that I hope you don't continue to run from or avoid her for the remainder of the time we are here. I hope that you can move past this incident and get to know her. I hope you can become friends with her. I hope that you two can have some sort of relationship with each other that isn't weird or strained." 

I tapped my fingers against my arm. "I hope for the same thing." 

He stood up. "Good. That's all I can say about this whole event." 

"Does Wynonna know?" I asked worriedly. 

He shook his head. "No. I thought it was best to not make a big deal out of something that you and Nicole need to figure out. You don't need your sister meddling into your affairs."

"And Nicole?" 

"She didn't say anything either, but you'll have to ask her why she didn't which I think would be a good place to start." 

"I suppose so." 

"It’s only a suggestion." 

"And I'll take it into consideration."

"Right. Well I'm off to bed." He walked pass me to get to the stairs in order to head up to his room.

I gently knocked my head back against the door frame. This is quite the mess I got myself into, but at least there's a ladder to help get me out if I'm willing to climb it.  

I shrugged off the door frame and went to Wynonna's room to check on her. I grabbed the blanket that pooled at the end of the bed and threw it over her tucking in the sides even though I know she'll only kick it off halfway through the night. It was the thought that counted. I cleaned a path from the bed to the door then shut the light off since she passed out with it on. I closed the door halfway knowing how she hates to have it closed completely then trudged up the stairs to get ready for bed. 

I resigned myself to shower in the morning since I didn't have the energy to do so right now. I quickly changed into my pajamas then stared at Nicole's hoodie sitting on my pillow. I tilted my head from side to side then huffed. I grabbed it throwing it on and taking a second to sniff her scent that still clung to it then grabbed an extra blanket off my bed. I climbed back down the stairs and went into the living room. I turned the TV off then tucked the blanket around Nicole making sure more of the blanket was bunched up against her rib cage in hopes that it would warm that spot up more. I took care to make sure her feet were also covered to keep her warm and to stop her from crunching up if she's the type of person to be bothered by her feet getting cold so that she doesn't end up waking up from the shooting pain in her ribs. 

I tucked some of her hair back behind her ear then leaned down and kissed her forehead. I know I shouldn't do it, but I can't seem to stop myself from doing this one innocent thing while she's sleeping. It'll be the only time I do it because Fish is right about me needing to put everything in focus and figuring out what I'm going to do and doing this isn't going to help, but I can add this to my mental list of things to do with Nicole. 

I know that I'm going to have to think about what's best for me and to find the courage to be selfish. I know I want to get to know Nicole for myself without input from Dolls or Wynonna. I know that I want to be closer to her and to do that I have to be willing to throw caution to the wind. Then there is the other side that has to deal with Champ. I have to think about whether or not being with him is worth it passed him being sweet and loving toward me because I don't want to be a bar hand for the rest of my life and he wants to be a bar owner in the future and for the rest of his life. I need to figure out if I'm willing to be by his side in that decision or if it’s time for me to let go even though it’s going to be crushing to see his shattered face all over town and at the bar. I have to be confident in my decision and make it clear that there will be no getting back together because if I leave an inch for him he'll run a mile. 

There's so much for me to think about and do, but I know that in the long run it will be worth it to have my mind and heart cleared up and ready to take on anything new that gets thrown in my path. It’s the only way I'm going to be able to end up surviving this summer and go into college with a clean slate. 

I set medicine and a glass of water down on the living room table for Nicole in the morning when she wakes up then did the same for Wynonna before heading up to my bed. I crawled into bed and buried myself under my blanket. For now, I will let Waverly of tomorrow deal with all of this because I need to get some rest. One can only strain themselves with thinking about the world for so long before it crushes them. 

Tomorrow I will start to get things in order starting with talking to Nicole and removing the veil of tension between us. The rest will come in due time.

**Author's Note:**

> As per usual, you can find my tumblr at musictomyearshsau.tumblr.com if you got any questions or whatever may cross your mind.


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